Thicker Than Water
by AndreaTash
Summary: After Sam has a dream about a cousin he and Dean haven't seen in years, they reluctantly agree they need to warn her. But is it too late to make amends? Can they put their differences aside when the dream comes true? Season 1 spoilers.
1. Chapter 1

Lincoln, Nebraska

Sam woke up from the dream soundlessly, his eyes had merely opened, yet he frowned in confusion. It had been a strange dream and he couldn't immediately make sense of it. The only thing he was sure of was that it was trying to warn him about something, or rather, about someone. He wasn't sure if the girl in the dream had really been her. He hadn't seen her face, only heard her voice, but it was familiar and unmistakable.

He sat up slowly on the bed and turned to his brother. Dean was sleeping soundly on the bed across from his. He wondered why she'd popped into his head. He would have dismissed it as nothing, but after the events of Bloody Mary and the realisation that perhaps his dreams were more than just that, but rather potential premonitions, he figured it was probably sensible to acknowledge them as such and tell Dean about it.

"Do you always watch me sleep? Cause I gotta tell ya, it's really creepy" He hadn't even realised Dean had woken up until he heard his groggy voice from across the room. He focused his eyes, noticing Dean was watching him curiously "Nightmare?"

Sam shook his head "I had a dream" He said blankly "It was…strange"

"About what?" Dean asked now also sitting up in bed. He too had now started to place more weight on the significance of his younger brother's dreams.

"Not what. Who" He got up from the bed and walked over to the small desk near the window of their motel room. He picked up Dean's cell phone and scrolled through his contacts.

"Jessica?" Dean asked sympathetically, knowing his brother was still reeling from the death of his girlfriend.

Sam took a deep breath and hesitated to answer. How to tell him? How to tell him? He decided to just spit it out and watch his reaction "Isabel"

Dean's face paled "Isabel?" He asked with a frown on his face "_Our_ Isabel?"

Sam nodded and resisted the urge to ask his brother just how many women called Isabel he knew "Yeah, I think something's gonna happen"

"Something like what?" Dean asked standing up and walking over to his brother, his voice now concerned instead of curious "Like mom? Like Jessica?"

Sam shook his head "No, nothing like that" He said watching his brother's relieved face "But something. I don't know, I couldn't really make sense of it, it was just… a feeling"

"You _saw_ her in your dream?"

"No, I heard her voice. I'm sure it was her" He found what he was looking for and held up the phone for Dean to see "You have her number on your phone?"

Dean faltered. He wondered if Sam would ever find it "Yeah but...I've never called it"

"Maybe now would be the time to" Sam suggested.

"And say what?" Dean snapped back "We haven't seen her in years. What would we say? And what exactly makes you think she'll even talk to us?"

Sam looked at the phone screen, with Isabel's number glowing brightly at him. All he had to do was press call. It was that easy. But Dean was right, what would he say? He flipped the phone shut and let out a deep breath of frustration.

He pulled out the laptop from his satchel and plugged it in, conscious of Dean standing right next to him watching closely.

"Illinois?" Sam asked Dean.

"Belleville" Dean said as Sam started searching for headlines and news reports in Isabel's area "Southern Illinois. In St Claire County, I think"

Sam pursed his lips as he found something. He turned the laptop around so his brother could see it clearly and watched his expression.

"Fifth local girl disappears without a trace" Dean read out loud from the webpage for a local newspaper. He continued to read "It's not Isabel"

"Not this one" Sam said.

"But maybe the next" Dean nodded, now tying up Sam's dream with the disappearances "Think she may be the sixth?"

"Or seventh, or eighth" Sam continued, watching his brother "It doesn't matter, we need to warn her"

"Sam, I really don't think she'll talk to us. I'll bet anything she hangs up on us the minute she recognises either of our voices"

Sam swallowed, knowing he would now have to suggest something Dean would not in a million years want to do "I know…I think we should drop by"

Dean let out a laugh "Drop by? Are you serious?" His expression sobered as he realised Sam was serious "Do I have to remind you that she hates me with a passion? And I don't think she's too crazy about you either?"

Sam ran a hand through his face, aware his brother had a valid point "I know. But I really think we should" He flipped the phone open again with the intention of calling her.

Dean saw this and snatched the phone from Sam, flipping it shut. Sam looked at him questioningly "Fine, we'll go" Dean said finally "But we're not calling her. It'll take us three days to drive to Illinois. That's plenty of time for her flee before we get there. No head's up"

Sam rolled his eyes but accepted Dean's suggestion as a good one "OK, but we leave now"


	2. Reunion

Disclaimer: I do not own supernatural or any of its characters. Only Isabel.

Setting: Takes place after Skin and before Hook Man. Mostly AU

Spoilers: For season 1

Belleville, Illinois

She drove home from work with the radio blaring. For the first time in a long time she was happy it was Friday and was really looking forward to the weekend. The week had been busy at work and all she wanted to do was go home and curl up in front of the fireplace and read a book. Maybe she would even call Jack after dinner.

She smiled as she though of Jack, her new boyfriend of two weeks. Tomorrow night would be their third date and she was feeling like a teenager at the mere thought. She liked this one and for once thought that this relationship might actually go somewhere. It was a scary thought to let someone into her life though, screwed up as she was. Men had come and gone since the death of her parents, but none of them had stuck around for long. Not that she made the effort anyway. But Jack was different. For some reason she felt she could really open up to him, tell him things. Maybe she wouldn't push him away, like she'd done with dozens of others. Then again, she thought realistically, it had only been two weeks. She yet had to have a relationship that lasted more than a month.

She tapped her hand on the steering wheel as she turned into her street, singing along with Steven Tyler about getting it on in an elevator. She stopped mid song as she pulled up to her house.

"What the…?" She breathed out, stopping her car behind the black Chevy parked in her driveway. She frowned as she tried to read the plates before the doors opened up and two men stepped out of the car, turning to face her. She gasped in surprise as she recognised them "No way"

She watched them come around to stand in front of her car, watching her expectantly. She turned the engine off and sat in her car. She wasn't sure how long she'd sat there watching them, but figured that sitting there wouldn't make them go away, and driving off now would be childish. Besides, they'd probably be there when she got back. And she would have to eventually come back.

She was happy to discover that the shock was now starting to wear off, and was being replaced by the warm fuzzy feeling of budding anger. Anger eight years in the making.

She stepped out of the car and slammed her door shut "What do you want?" She asked coldly, looking from one man to the other.

"Hi Isabel. How are you?"

"Not in the mood for chit chat Sam, thanks for asking" She replied testily "What are you doing here?"

"We just wanted to see you" Sam said slowly, his tone friendly yet timid.

"Well, you've seen me" She said opening the door to her car.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to move my car so that you boys can jump back into the bat mobile and get the hell out"

"Isabel, wait" Sam called out moving forward and shutting the door to her car before she had the chance to jump back in. She looked up at him impatiently "Can we talk to you?"

"No" She replied briskly.

"Please Isabel" He pleaded.

"Oh well then, on second thought, I'll have to say no again" She said sarcastically.

"Isabel, we know you're pissed"

She hadn't forgotten he was there too and she turned to him, her anger now redirected "Pissed? You think I'm _pissed_ at you Dean? You have seriously underestimated me"

"Can we please just come in and talk to you for a minute?" He asked, walking around to her.

She took a step back, purely out of frustration "I'm running out of ways to say no, but I will repeat myself if I have to"

"It's important" Dean insisted.

"I don't want to hear it"

"I don't care!" Dean snapped back impatiently, his voice getting louder.

"I'm not surprised you always were a selfish bastard"

"And you've always been a bitch!"

"Stop! The both of you, just stop!" Sam shouted. Dean and Isabel turned to Sam, caught by surprise by his outburst "We just want to talk to you Isabel"

"And I want you to go away" She repeated slowly as if talking to a four year old.

"Fine, we're out of here" Dean said turning and heading back to his car.

"Dean, no!" Sam called out to his brother "Dean!"

Dean stopped and took a deep breath, gathering all patience before turning back to Isabel and Sam. He stayed next to his car and crossed his arms.

"Sam" She said in a softer tone "Please, just go"

"It's been eight years Bel" Sam said pleadingly "Aren't you the least bit curious as to why we're here?"

Dammit! She thought to herself. She was. She looked up at Sam and cursed herself as she felt her resolve melt looking at his eyes. How did he do it?

"I'm giving you ten minutes to talk. _Only you_" She emphasised pointing to Sam "Then I want you both to go away" She turned a glacial stare at Dean "Far, far away"

She grabbed her things from her car and walked to her front door, Sam and Dean behind her.

"It's good to see you again Bel" She heard Sam say from behind her.

She turned to him angrily and fixed him with a glare "Don't Sam" She said icily "I'm not in the mood. Don't for one second believe this is any kind of happy family reunion"

She walked into her house, not waiting to see if they were following her.

Dean turned to Sam as they walked in the door "Told you she'd be thrilled to see us" He said sarcastically patting him on the shoulder.


	3. Sam's Dream

Isabel looked from Sam to Dean in disbelief. They actually expected her to buy this? They were looking at her seriously and she came to the conclusion that they, at least, believed what they were saying. She hadn't seen or talked to them in years but she was pretty sure she could still tell when her cousins were yanking her chain. Especially Sam, who'd always been a terrible liar.

"Please tell me you're joking" She said raising her eyebrows.

"Yes Isabel" Dean cut in sarcastically "we drove twelve hundred miles to play a prank on you"

"Well then, are you high or insane? You can't possibly expect me to buy this" She chuckled humourlessly "let me get it right, you're here because Sam" She looked to Sam "had a weird dream that may have involved me?"

"Pretty much" Dean said shrugging.

"I can't really explain it Isabel, but something bad is going to happen, I'm pretty sure" Sam said quickly.

"Maybe I kick you ass for pissing me off" She suggested.

"I'm serious Isabel!"

"Put yourself in my place Sam! Pretend for one second that you're sane. How do you think all this sounds to me?"

"Why would I lie?" Sam said pleadingly.

She swallowed hard and took a deep breath, watching her cousin closely "I know you're not lying, Sam. I could always tell, you know?" She gave him a faint smile then rested her cheek on her palm, propping herself up on the kitchen table "OK, tell me more about the dream. What do you think it means?"

"I'm not sure but I think it's got something to do with these disappearances" Sam said pulling out some print outs and resting them on the kitchen table in front of her.

She picked up the printouts and newspaper clippings. Yes, she had heard about this on the news. Five girls had gone missing in the last nine weeks. All between 20 and 25 years of age, pretty, single, living on their own. Just like her. One of the girls she'd actually known. She'd met her at a party a couple of years back. A friend of a friend of a friend. Thinking about it now sent a shiver down her spine.

"You think there's someone behind this?"

"Someone or something" Sam added.

She looked at him tiredly "Again with the goblins and leprechauns Sam?"

"Look, whatever or whoever it is" Dean interrupted "He's taken five girls and he's going to do it again. We have to stop him"

"We?" She asked incredulously "Don't you think this is possibly a problem for the police"

"Have they gotten anywhere?" He snapped pulling out clippings "seven weeks, five girls, and they don't even have a suspect!"

That was true, she thought. They hadn't even calmed down the local public with the false hope of a suspect. Whoever it was left no clues, no signs of struggle. It had initially begged the question of whether the girls had simply packed up and left. Except they hadn't packed up. Their apartments had been left as if they'd just gone shopping, or to work, or to a bar. Wallets and keys had been left on their dressers, their beds left unmade, their lights turned on. Someone had taken them, someone they knew.

"There's nothing linking them" She said looking down at the pictures of the girls "There's nothing linking them to me either. We all live in different neighbourhoods, we all went to different schools, and we all work in different places. I don't see the connection"

"Maybe there is no connection" Sam said "Maybe _he_ is the connection"

Her face paled and she stared at Sam as she let the implications of what he'd just said sink in "What are you saying?" She knew what he was saying, but rather he say it out loud than her.

"Maybe it's someone you already know"

"I think I would know if any of my friends happened to be psychopaths" She said bitterly "It would have come up in conversation"

"I'm not thinking someone you know well" Sam said, now seemingly pouncing on this new train of thought "Maybe a casual acquaintance or someone you may have met recently"

She thought for a moment. The only person she'd met recently was Jack, who was supposed to pick her up for their date tomorrow night. But she knew Jack. She met him at the coffee shop around the corner from her work. She shook her head and let anger overtake her suspicion. Anger at Dean and Sam for putting these ridiculous ideas into her head. She should have known they'd have an ulterior motive for dropping by, other than the compelling desire to see her again

"Paranoia may be a way of life for you, but it's not for me, OK?" She said sarcastically as she stood up and walked over to her room without even glancing back at either of her cousins "You can't just show up out of the blue after all these years and fill my head with this nonsense. I'm going to bed, the couch rolls out, you can sleep there"


	4. Making Amends

She woke up early the next morning. Normally, getting up at 7am didn't really faze her, but last night she hadn't slept well. She knew the reason why. She was looking at it right now as she stood at the door to her lounge room. The sofa bed had been pulled out and the entire room was now a makeshift bedroom where her cousins were sleeping. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. The sofa bed was big enough for two people and still Dean had taken the floor.

She frowned as she watched them sleep. How the hell had they managed to talk her into staying? Why did she always fall for Sam's puppy dog face, even after eight years? Eight years ago, in the midst of her anger, she had promised herself she didn't need them and she would never talk to them again, let alone allow them into her life. And now here they were, not only back in her life, but in her own house. She felt conflicted. Part of her was happy to see them again, part of her was angry at seeing them again. She started to get frustrated and decided to get on with her morning run to clear her thoughts and relax her. It always worked.

She ran for about an hour before walking back into her house. It was quiet and she walked straight into the kitchen and headed to the fridge, pouring herself a glass of cold water.

"Where were you?"

She spat out her water and narrowly avoided dropping the glass onto the tiled floor. She turned to Sam, who was sitting at the kitchen table "Did I by any chance die from a heart attack in your dream?" She asked clutching her chest.

"Sorry" He said sheepishly "I was worried…and bored. Mostly bored"

"I went for a run" She said, finishing her water and leaning back against the kitchen bench and facing him "I needed to clear my head"

"Did it work?"

Hmm, good question, she thought. It had worked wonders until she came back to reality "Somewhat"

"What are your plans for today?" He asked her.

"I have some errands to run. Some grocery shopping. Gotta pop into work and show some client a couple of houses. Then I'm going out with Jack tonight"

"Boyfriend?"

She nodded "Yeah. What are your plans? Apart from leaving?"

He looked at her resignedly and decided to let the comment slide for now "I think we might head into town and check into these girls and how they went missing. See if there's anything unusual, or any connection"

"You mean, if the boogyman is taking them?" She asked taunting him.

"I know it's not easy to accept, but trust me Isabel, I have dreams and quite often they come true. They're almost like premonitions. There's something going on here"

"Oh, I believe you" She said "But I still think you being here is ridiculous and unnecessary. You've warned me, thankyou"

"We're not leaving" He said evenly.

"Look, Sam" She said "I live alone. I've lived alone for years. I like it. You can't come into my life after eight years of not hearing one word from either you or Dean and expect me to welcome you back with open arms. I'm trying to be as polite as I can when I tell you that I don't want you here"

Sam smiled weakly "That's not very polite"

"I'm not kidding Sam!" She yelled feeling herself getting riled up "What will it take to get you to leave me alone?"

"Do you really want us to go?" He asked sounding a little wounded "Really? Aren't you even a little happy to see us?"

"I'm happy to see you, but I'd be happier to see you go" She said somewhat truthfully.

Sam let out a defeated breath "Why is it so hard for you to meet me halfway?"

"Are you trying to make _me_ out to be the bad guy?" She asked incredulously "I'm the one who got left behind eight years ago! I'm the one who had to pick up the million and one pieces of a shattered life and put them together again, by myself! You lost your mom…I lost my entire family! Do you have any idea what that was like for a sixteen year old girl?"

"No" He said quietly knowing that she would always be able to throw that in his face.

"That's right, you don't" She yelled "Where were you when my world fell apart? And why do you even care what happens to me? Why now?"

"How can you ask me that?" He argued back, angry that he was letting her get to him "You're my cousin! Do you really think I want something to happen to you?"

"You didn't care _then_!"

"I was fourteen Isabel! What was I supposed to do?"

They were yelling now and Dean's figure appeared through the door. He stood at the doorway in sweatpants, his feet bare and he crossed his arms over his bare chest as he frowned at Sam and Isabel.

"What the hell's going on?" He asked grumpily. The fighting had woken him up.

Isabel was seething as she glared at Sam across the room.

"We were just talking" Sam said, calming down.

"It sounded a lot like yelling" Dean said "What time is it?"

"It's ten past eight" Isabel said.

"In the morning? On a Saturday?"

"Yeah Dean, Saturday has a morning too" Isabel said sarcastically.

Dean closed his eyes and sighed dramatically "For Christ's sake Isabel, don't start this crap again. It's too early and I can't deal with you right now"

"Do you see me doing cartwheels? I'm less than thrilled about this too, but I do have a solution"

"We are not leaving" He said firmly, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"Are you going to take into consideration what I want, or would that be terribly naïve of me?"

"Not until you stop acting like a child" He yelled at her.

"I will stop acting like a child when you stop acting like the last eight years never happened!"

"I don't want to have this argument" Dean warned her in a harsh tone.

But she wasn't going to back down that easily "I don't want to have to have this argument but it's not as easy for me to forget Dean! Now, Sam tells me he was only fourteen and could do nothing. I hope you have a better excuse than _that_!"

"What did you want me to do Isabel?" He snapped back.

"Anything! Anything at all would have been better than nothing! How dare you be angry with me! You have no right to be angry with me"

Sam watched from his seat at the table as Isabel and Dean argued on the other side of the room. They were unconsciously moving towards each other and their voices were getting louder and louder. It reminded Sam of two storms, two cyclones hurdling towards each other until they merged into one huge angry tempest. He was more tired than alarmed. As long as he could remember, Dean and Isabel could not be in the same room for more than ten minutes without ending up at each other's throats. He had thought eight years might have changed things, but it seemed to be just wishful thinking. He knew he would have to interfere as soon as things got too heated and the thought pissed him off. He always had to end up being the peacemaker.

"You started this fight!" Dean countered childishly.

"No, you walked into it and took over, because _everything always_ has to be about the almighty Dean! Why are you here? Can't you just go?"

"We're not leaving and that's final. We're not gonna argue about it any more!" He barked at her, trying to intimidate her, which he remembered worked ten years ago when they were younger, but watching her stand her ground made him realise that apparently, it didn't anymore.

The only thing standing between Isabel and him was the island counter. He considered walking around it and moving to her, using his imposing physique to his advantage.

"Why? Because you said so? I want you to leave!"

"Make me!"

Sam's patience wore out and he reached with his fists and pounded on the wooden kitchen table "Enough!" He bellowed.

The arguing couple froze, Isabel gasped and jumped slightly. The whole table shook and a couple of oranges on the fruit-bowl rolled out of place and fell onto the floor. He stood up from his seat and walked over to Isabel and Dean.

They both turned to Sam in surprise "That's enough!" He yelled angrily again.

Dean watched him in shock, never having seen an outburst like this from his generally mild mannered brother. Isabel was also startled but in addition a little fearful and she took a step back, watching Sam warily.

Sam faced his brother first "Put yourself in her place Dean and try to be little more understanding. She's right, this is _not_ about you!"

Sam turned to face Isabel and she swallowed hard at his stern look "And you" He pointed a finger at her and moved forward. She instinctively took another step back, her back making contact with the bench behind her and she realised there was no where for her to go. She glanced at Dean unsurely, but he was still watching his brother "Look at me!"

She turned back to Sam, her eyes wide "What?" She asked tentatively.

"I can't even begin to say how sorry I am about what happened to you Isabel. But this is not about that" His voice softened and she relaxed slightly "We are here because no matter what has happened in the past, we are family. I think you might be in trouble and regardless of how you feel about us, I'm not going to let anything happen to you if I can help it. So here's what we're going to do. We are going to start trying to get along like adults, and you are going to give us a chance to make amends. How does that sound?"

"Sam, I don't…"

He looked at her pleadingly and she realised that he was right "Please Isabel. I know there's lot to work out between us, but please can we start over. Don't let you anger cloud you. Don't you want a fresh start?"

She watched him thoughtfully before looking at Dean. He was watching her closely too. It seemed Sam's little speech had struck a cord with him as well. He had that little twinkle in his eye, the one that seemed to say 'How about it? I'm game if you are'. She crumbled.

"Yeah, I guess" She said finally "I do want to start over, but I can't guarantee that I can let everything go"

"I'm not asking you to. Just don't let it be something you can't see past. We've all grown into different people now"

She nodded in agreement "OK. I'm willing to try" She looked at Dean. Sam turned also and both were now facing him.

"Me too" Dean said.


	5. The Date

She came out of her room with a little trepidation. She was wearing her "third date outfit", which unlike the way it sounded, left a lot more to the imagination than one would presume. It was a short black halter neck cocktail dress, and by short it really just meant that it came to one inch above her knees. She believed it showed just the right amount of skin. It wasn't demure, but it wasn't slutty either. She teamed it with her black suede sling backs and an emerald green shawl, hair up and minimal make up.

It was an outfit she'd developed over the years, practical for its purpose. It was easy to take off quickly, her hair up all night added a little extra excitement when, at the right moment, she removed the large clip keeping it up and her auburn waves tumbled free down her shoulders. No jewellery meant no unnecessary fiddling around, and minimal make up meant she wouldn't wake up the next morning with half her face smeared on the pillow. She grabbed her "sleepover kit" containing a travel sized toothbrush, a moisturising towellette, condoms and a miniature perfume.

Normally she would bring a man home, finding it a little safer than going to his place, but with her two cousins staying over at the moment, there was no way in hell she would let Jack spend the night. She'd already spent half an hour in the shower wondering it she shouldn't put tonight off until Sam and Dean left. But she decided against it, rationalising that she had nothing to hide and she would not pretend to be someone she wasn't. It's not like they live like monks either, she thought to herself.

The boys were watching the evening news while eating pizza and making quick work of a six pack they'd bought on the way back from town earlier. They looked up at her as her heels made contact with the floor boards. Dean's eyes widened in surprise, before he nodded in appreciation, she noted as a disturbing afterthought. Sam smiled at her, in that way of his as he looked her up and down.

"You look great" He said.

"You think?" She said twirling for them.

"I'd do you" Dean supplied casually. Both Sam and Isabel turned to him, a disturbed look mimicked on both their faces "If we weren't related" He added.

"You'd do anything with a pulse" Isabel snapped back sarcastically before frowning "But thanks for the compliment…I think"

"Where is he taking you?" Sam asked turning on the couch so that he faced her completely. Dean was looking back at the TV again.

"I don't know, somewhere for dinner, I guess. Maybe a few drinks" She shrugged and wondered to herself where they could actually go "You know, it's a Saturday night, you guys should go do something"

"What time will you be back?" Sam asked and she cringed inwardly. How to tell him she wasn't coming back tonight?

"I don't know, but you shouldn't wait up anyway" She said vaguely waving her arm dismissively and heading to the kitchen "I'll take the spare key"

Sam turned around to Dean, to find his pointed expression mirrored in his brother. They knew what she meant. Sam stood up and followed her into the kitchen.

"You're staying over a Jack's?" He asked, watching her closely as she removed her cell phone from the charger on the kitchen bench.

"I don't have to ask for your permission, Sam" She said defensively, but still refusing to meet his eyes.

"I know…it's just that…I…"

"Would you rather me bring him here?" She asked turning to face him sharply.

"No!" He said, rather quickly and forcibly.

Dean came in at this point and she rolled her eyes in exasperation "Oh spare me" She mumbled to herself.

"Where does he live?" He asked, not beating around the bush.

She narrowed her eyes at him "Why?"

He raised his hands in a placating gesture and raised his eyebrows "Just in case…we need to contact you"

"I'll have my cell phone" She added, lifting it for the boys to see before slipping it into her purse.

"Do you _know_ where he lives?" Sam asked, the concern more obvious on his face than on Dean's, whom she couldn't tell in under that knowing smirk he was even remotely worried.

"Look" She said tersely "I'm twenty four years old.This is not my first boyfriend and it is most definitely _not_ my first sleepover, so all this interrogation and concern is really not necessary" She didn't want to tell them she didn't know where Jack lived "I do not have to explain myself to you"

"Fine" Dean said closing his eyes before looking at her again.

"Just keep your phone on" Sam said and she fixed him with a glare "please?"

"You got protection?" Dean asked blatantly and she had to fight the urge to cringe at the idea of discussing anything related to sex with her cousins. But her indignation at the question actually incensed her.

"I don't own a gun" She said innocently.

"No, I meant like…"

"I know what you meant" She interrupted him as she pulled out three condoms from her purse for them both to see.

Sam groaned and closed his eyes, unable to continue on the path the conversation was going. Dean just raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

"Three?" He asked smirking.

At Sam's discomfort and Dean's arrogant smirk, she felt emboldened "What can I say?" She smiled as she dropped the condoms back in her purse and snapping is shut, raising an eyebrow at Dean "I'm an optimist"

The doorbell rang and all three sighed in relief. Sam started towards the door "I'll get it'

She grabbed him by his sleeve before he stepped out of the kitchen "Oh, no you won't" She sad warningly.

"There's no way you're going without us checking him out" Sam said.

"Checking him out?" She asked incredulously "I don't think so"

With Sam standing in the doorway and effectively blocking her way into the foyer, it was easy for Dean to slip by and make his way to the door. She tried unsuccessfully to move around Sam, but he moved with her, continuing to block her. She glared fiercely at him, but he only moved aside when he heard the door open. They both knew now that she would have to introduce them.

"You must be Jack" Dean said as he opened the door.

Jack stood on the front porch, looking at Dean in confusion.

"Yes, hello" He said shaking Dean's hand "You are?"

"Dean" Dean said smiling "Isabel's cousin. Come in, she's just in the kitchen with Sam"

Dean moved aside to let Jack pass through. He stepped through the front door and found Isabel walking towards him from the kitchen. A tall, lean man behind her.

"You must be Sam" Jack said extending his hand.

"Jack" Sam said nodding as he moved forward from behind Isabel and shook the man's hand.

He looked at Isabel and he could immediately tell she was uncomfortable and wanted nothing more than to leave.

"You ready babe?" He asked her as he moved forward to kiss her.

Her eyes widened and at the last moment he moved his cheek to the side, and planted an innocent kiss on her cheek.

"Yeah, let's go" She said grabbing his arm and pulling him out.

'Where are you guys going?" Dean asked Jack before Isabel could drag him out the door.

The young man turned to face Dean and Sam. Isabel pinned Dean with a warning stare.

"Dinner" He said casually "Then maybe dancing"

"Right" Dean said slowly, not so subtly letting Jack know he didn't believe him "Well, Jack, you just make sure our little cousin here keeps her cell phone on, otherwise I'll get really mad"

Jack swallowed and looked at Isabel, who didn't take her eyes off of Dean "He's just kidding" She said with forced calm, then smiled frostily "Well, see you guys later, don't wait up"

This time she didn't wait or hesitate, she grabbed Jack and practically dragged him out the door, quickly getting in Jack's car. She finally looked back as Jack started to pull away. Sam and Dean were both standing on her front porch. Dean was waving at her in a friendly manner, while his eyes were telling her to be careful. It would have been almost sweet if she hadn't caught Sam writing down something on his palm. She rolled her eyes and shook her head as she realised he was writing down Jack's licence plate number.


	6. Dean, grow up!

Sam and Dean waited until Jack's car had disappeared down the street.

"He seemed OK" Sam said shutting the door behind him as they walked back into the house.

Dean shrugged and walked through into Isabel's room "Yeah, she'll be fine"

Sam stood at Isabel's doorway, looking at Dean questioningly "What are you doing?"

Dean was now looking through Isabel's drawers "Interesting" he mumbled as he inspected what looked like her lingerie. He looked up at Sam briefly before returning to his task "Nothing"

Sam crossed his arms and leaned against the doorway "You're snooping"

Dean closed the drawers and walked to the closet, opening the door and ruffling through the hangers "Yeah, so?" Dean had no qualms about snooping through his cousin's things. In fact, her bedroom was the only room he had yet to explore.

"It's wrong Dean" Sam protested, now walking towards his brother as Dean now started looking through the drawers of Isabel's bedside tables "And what exactly do you think you'll find?"

"I don't know, I just…" He stopped mid-sentence as he pulled out a small white box from the bottom drawer. He lifted it up to Sam to see, shaking it slightly for effect.

"What if it's something you don't want to see?" Sam asked with trepidation. He didn't really want to know what Isabel kept hidden in her drawers. He also felt very wrong about invading her privacy like that.

"Nothing will shock me Sam" Dean said casually as he opened the box. He frowned as he looked at the contents.

He pulled out two bottles of pills and studied them as he sat on the edge of the bed. Sam watched his brother from across the room before finally joining him to sit beside him. Dean looked at Sam and held out one of the bottles for him.

"Prozac" Sam said quietly "Antidepressants"

"Yeah" Dean said and held up the second bottle, struggling with the label "And disp…diap…diaspam?"

Sam grabbed the other bottle and studied the labels "Diazepam. It's a sedative. Valium. They're dated two years ago" He said shaking his head in confusion "They're not that new, maybe she's off them"

"I'm more interested in why she was on them in the first place" Dean said grabbing the bottles from Sam and putting them in the box again, before replacing them into the drawer.

"We haven't seen her or spoken to her in eight years" Sam said walking out of the room with Dean following close behind "A lot could have happened in that time"

"Yeah, tell me about it" Dean said "I mean, she's not the sweet little girl I remember. And dude…" He said raising his eyebrows as he looked at Sam "You do _not_ want to know what I found in her underwear drawer!"

Sam cringed at the implication in his brother's comment "For Christ's sake Dean. Grow up"


	7. What happened eight years ago?

Isabel quietly sipped on her glass of Shiraz and she looked over the table at Jack. She smiled to herself. He had handled her cousins very well, and she also had to give credit to Sam and Dean, they had behaved pretty well. She'd never had older brothers or male friends so she was unused to that kind of protectiveness. Her father had been a little overprotective, but he had died when she was just sixteen, so he'd only had to deal with two years or so of his daughter entering the dating scene.

Jack looked great tonight, she thought to herself. Tall, dark, beautiful hazel eyes. At 31 years of age, he was a bit olderthan her , but he had such boyish features it was easy for her to forget at times. She thought back to her previous lovers and frowned to herself. She didn't really have a type, the selection was...diverse. She wondered what that meant. Was she incredibly open minded when it came to men or did she just figure it wouldn't ever last so what did it matter? Would Jack be any different? How long untilshe shut him off and he just walked away? His voice startled her from her thoughts.

"So, how long are your cousins staying with you?" Jack asked her.

"I don't know, we haven't really talked about it" She said shrugging and wondering if maybe she should discuss it with them when she got back "But I haven't seen or spoken to them in eight years, so I doubt they'll be in a hurry to leave. Any suggestions as to how I may be able to get rid off them?"

"Don't they have jobs, or school, or something?" He asked curiously.

She hesitated wondering why he was so interested in Sam and Dean, instead of talking about her, or himself "Well, Sam's just taking some time off from college. He was at Stanford. Dean's sort of taking him on a road trip. I don't really know all that much. I didn't really ask. I was too shocked to see them"

"Eight years is a long time to not speak to your own family" Jack said.

"Well, it's complicated" She explained taking another swig of her wine "Their mom, my mom's sister, died when they were little. I saw them alittle when we were kids, but not all that much.When my parents died eight years ago, John, that's Sam and Dean's dad, was the only family member I had left who I thought would take me in" She swallowed as she realised she'd never told anyone this, with the exception of her therapist. She hadn't even really spoken about what had happened to Sam or Dean "I thought wrong"

"He couldn't?"

She chuckled humourlessly and downed the rest of the wine "He didn't want to" She said softly with a wince, she hadn't anticipated that it would hurt so much to say it "He said no"

"Oh" Jack said, now knowing where the bitterness came from "And what happened?"

"Foster care" She said quickly "Until I turned eighteen"

"Just for two years?"

"It felt like an eternity" She said sadly "I never spoke to them again. I refused to, even though Sam and Dean tried at the beginning. Eventually, I guess they just gave up"

The sombre mood was then broken when the waitress brought over their meals. They thanked her and proceeded to eat.

"I can tell you don't want to talk about it anymore" Jack said gently "I promise I won't bring it up again"

"It's OK" She said with a small smile "We need to know this sort of stuff about each other. Besides, I have moved on. Although, I admit I still do harbour a little resentment towards them, but it's mostly directed at their father. What could Sam and Dean do? They were only kids when that happened too"

"And now?" Jack asked her.

She took a second to consider his question, innocent as it was, it stirred up a lot of pent up feelings. Not all of them good, either.

"Well, now we're all grown up. Things have changed" Even as she was saying it she seriously wondered if she truly believed it "You can't hold a grudge forever"

"Still, they didn't have to wait so long to contact you"

She looked up at him sharply and was about to say something when a little voice inside her head told her he was right. She nodded slowly as she considered his statement.

"I know. We still have issues to work out" She decided she'd had enough of this conversation. It was time to digress "How's your pasta?"


	8. The Morning After

AN: Sorry it's been a while. I've had issues with the document manager. The next couple of chapters will deal with a little more backstory. I figured these guys have a few issues to resolve before they can get along and work together. Thanks so much for the reviews. It's not the first fanfic I've written, but it is the first one I've finished and therefore posted.

The kettle boiled, causing Sam to jump slightly. He turned and finished making the coffee. He could hear sounds coming from the other room and figured Dean was awake. Before he could yell out to him if he wanted breakfast the door to the bathroom was shut, and minutes later he could hear the shower running.

He pulled the toast out of the toaster and brought the coffeepot to the dining table. He grabbed two empty mugs and sat down, waiting for Dean to come out of the bathroom. Every few minutes his gaze would drift to the phone and he would contemplate calling Isabel, only to end up shaking his head.

"You made coffee" Dean's voice startled him out of his daze and he looked up to see his brother, wearing only a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. He walked lazily to the table.

"I made breakfast" Sam said proudly, gesturing to the spread on the table before him.

Dean smirked at his brother "You'll make a wonderful wife one day"

"Bite me" Sam said.

Dean sat down and poured himself a big mug of coffee, wincing slightly as he took a sip "Not bad, but Bel's is better"

"Yeah well, she's not back yet" Sam said, a little gruffly.

Dean glanced at the clock above the stove and shrugged "It's only 10 o'clock" He said casually, spreading an obscene amount of peanut butter on his toast "They're probably still…"

"Dean!" Sam exclaimed appalled.

Dean looked at his brother, a bemused expression on his face "Dude, you've got to lighten up"

"She's our cousin" He continued "I don't want to think about her doing…that stuff"

Dean rolled his eyes "If you're worried then call her" He said with his mouth full.

"You don't think she'll get mad?"

"Oh, she'll be furious!" Dean said smiling "But it'd be nice to see her pissed at you instead of me for a change"

The front door opened and Isabel came into the kitchen. She was, of course, in the same outfit as the night before. The only difference was her hair was out and slightly tousled, and she was carrying her heels in one of her hands. She looked at the boys for minute, as if daring them to say something inappropriate and crude.

"Good morning kitten" Dean said smirking "How was your date?"

"Obviously it went very well" She said smiling.

"Would you like some coffee?" Sam asked pointing to the coffee pot.

She grimaced unsurely "Did you make it?"

"Yes, but really it's not that bad" He added defensively.

"Who cares!" She said moving towards the cupboard to grab and empty mug "I need caffeine"

Sam noticed she was noticeably limping as she walked back "Why are you limping? Are you hurt?"

"Yes" She said and almost laughed out loud when both men turned to look at her expectantly.

"What happened?" Dean asked quickly, having bristled visibly.

"We went dancing after dinner and I got a massive blister on my foot, OK?" She said, shaking her head as they looked at her suspiciously "Look! It's gross"

She walked over to the table and lifted her foot, resting it on the edge of the table. Right there at the base of her bid toe, a big angry red blister.

"I believe you, thankyou, now please remove your foot" Sam said looking away from the offending limb in disgust.

"Yeah, seriously Bel" Dean added "I think I've lost my appetite"

"Really? Oh, OK" She said, removing her foot as they asked only to lean over and snatched Dean's toast from his fingers.

"Hey, that's my breakfast!" Dean protested.

"Cry me a river Dean" She said walking away with the mug of coffee and Dean's toast "I'm gonna take a shower"


	9. The Perfect Storm

She turned the TV in her room on as she started stripping for her shower. The morning news was just starting. She jumped in the hot streaming water and began to wash her hair. Ten minutes later she came out feeling renewed, and a lot less sore, she thought to herself with a smile. She wrapped a towel around her body and walked back into her room. She started drying her hair with a towel when the story on the news stopped her. She immediately rushed out into the lounge room and sprinted to the TV.

"Sam! Dean!" She yelled out.

She turned to the right channel just as the boys came running in from the kitchen.

"What's wrong?" Sam asked.

"Watch this" She said stepping back from the screen so they could watch the news report. The back of her legs hit the coffee table.

They stood in silence as the news reporter described the disappearance of another girl. After two days of not turning up for her weekend waitress job someone finally decided to go check on her. Her apartment was abandoned, and the girl was gone without a trace. The police had not yet issued a statement but it was assumed that it was related to the other girls' disappearances.

Isabel turned the TV off, but continued to stare at it blankly. A look of despair spreading over her face "Oh my God" She breathed out.

"Leslie DaSilva" Dean said the girl's name out loud as he pulled out a notepad and started scribbling. He took a seat on the couch "Leslie DaSilva"

"I know her" Isabel said turning around to look down at Dean.

Dean stopped writing and looked up at her expectantly, so did Sam she noticed "Know her how?"

"She was my college roommate" Isabel said sitting next to him"freshman year. We sort of lost touch after I dropped out" She was starting to get cold and could feel the water dripping from her still wet hair down her shoulders. She crossed her arms as goosebumbs broke out all over her body.

"What else?" Dean asked anxiously.

She frowned at him "What do you mean? She was…I mean…_is_…she's a kindergarten teacher. Same age as me. Kinda shy, but really sweet" She hung her head and closed her eyes "Oh God, I haven't spoken to her in almost a year, and now it's all I seem to want to do"

"Any family?" Sam continued, looking down at his cousin.

She shook her head "No, just like me. That's why we got along so well, I guess"

"Boyfriend?"

"I don't know. Not since the last time I saw her, but like I said, it was ages ago. She was a bit of a loner"

"Where did she live?" Dean asked pulling out a map. He noticed the panicked glare Isabel shot him "Does, where _does_ she live?" He back peddled.

"About an hour from here" She leaned over and pointed to Leslie's neighbourhood on the map, scribbling the address on his notepad "Why?"

"We should check it out" Dean said standing up.

"Just wait a second" Isabel said sharply "Check what out Dean? You're not a detective. You can't just push your way into a police investigation!"

"They might be missing something!" Dean said.

"And you're going to find it?" She asked unconvinced.

"I'm not going to sit back and wait for the evening news update!" He snapped.

She stood up and faced Sam and Dean "Look boys, we've skirted around this long enough and even though we've never said anything, I know what's going on. I know you and your dad have this Ghostbusters-X Files thing going on, but...I don't want to be a part of your travelling freak show"

Dean bristled and tilted his head toward her, his eyes narrowing "_Freak show_?" He asked, his tone challenging as if daring her to repeat it.

"Yeah, you heard me right" She said standing toe to toe with Dean.

Sam stood across from them and looked tiredly from his brother to his cousin, wishing Dean could be the bigger person for once and just let it go.

"And you're the poster child for mental health, are you?" Dean asked maliciously.

Isabel blanched "Don't you dare turn this around on me!" She yelled.

"Let's settle down" Sam interrupted, dreading that this little quarrel was very quickly escalating.

"I don't want you to drag me into this" She continued, oblivious to Sam "I don't care what happened to your mom or what your dad's brainwashed you to believe"

It was Sam's turn to be shocked as he stared at his cousin "What?"

"You keep her out of it" Dean threatened pointing a finger down at her.

She scoffed it off "Why don't you? Everything always comes back to it. Your entire lives come back to your mom! She's been dead for over twenty years" Even as she spoke she knew she'd gone too far, but it was like she couldn't stop herself "Isn't it time you got over it?"

Dean moved like a flash, too quick for Isabel and even too quick for Sam to stop him, before either could react he had Isabel against the wall behind her. The picture frames hanging on the wall rattled. She screamed in surprise and moved one of her arms forward attempting to push him away, her other arm went involuntarily up to her chest to hold up the towel covering her.

The silence was electric. Dean was glowering at Isabel, his face just inches from hers, as he pinned her to the wall with his forearm across her collarbone. His entire body appeared to be clenched in tension. Isabel stared back, defiant but noticeably subdued, knowing she'd hit a particularly raw nerve she shouldn't have and yet did so, on purpose.

Sam watched them from across the room as Dean took deep measured breaths, trying to control his anger, and Isabel watched him warily, wondering when the right time to speak would be. He moved forward slowly, ready to pull Dean off of her, because he looked like he was going to strangle her if she so much as breathed wrong.

"Guys" He said softly, approaching the couple cautiously "Dean?"

Dean heard his brother, acknowledging him with a deep breath "Too far" He said in an icy whisper to Isabel.

She swallowed, looking at him straight in the eye "I know. I'm sorry"

He closed his eyes and backed away from her, but only a step, enough that she could relax slightly but not enough that she could walk away.

"We've always clashed, and I can deal with that Isabel, but…there's some things we can't use against each other" He said softly but sternly "Don't bring our parents into this"

She looked at him for a minute, wondering if he was including her own parents in that statement. She knew that if he'd made a comment like that about her own parents she would have gone at him with everything in her. She nodded, acknowledging his proposition.

"Fair enough" She said shakily looking up at him "Don't scare me like that again"

He mimicked her and nodded "I'm sorry" He lifted his hand and rubbed her bare arm up and down gently "You're shivering. Go change"

He took another step back from her and allowed her enough room for her to move around him and head towards her bedroom. She shut the door behind her and leaned against it, hearing her cousins' hushed voices coming from the next room as she struggled to control her breathing.

When Dean turned he wasn't surprised to see Sam's disapproving look directed straight at him. He knew he could have handled the situation better, but even so, it wasn't like they hadn't had fights like that before.

"Maybe I should go and see what I can find out about this Leslie girl" Dean suggested before Sam had the chance to lecture him about tact and sensibility when it came to women and family, particularly with women who were family.

"Do you need me?" Sam asked, wanting to find out but also wanting to smooth things over with Isabel on Dean's behalf.

Dean shook his head "No, I can do it. You should probably stay with her" He nodded towards Isabel's room "talk to her…maybe you can…"

"Clean up your mess?" Sam suggested accusingly.

Dean let out a big breath and ran a palm over his face, so tired of having to censor his opinions and justifying himself when it came to Isabel "Don't start with me Sam"

"_Me_? You attacked her!" He whispered harshly "I know you got off on the wrong foot yesterday"

"Yesterday?" Dean spat out "We got off on the wrong foot twenty four years ago Sam! We have never gotten along, and we probably never will. Why can't you just accept that?"

"It doesn't have to be that way Dean. Can you for once swallow your pride and be the bigger person? Make an effort"

"I _am_ making an effort. She doesn't want us here!" Dean said loudly pointing towards Isabel's room "And to be honest with you, I don't want to be here either"

"Keep your voice down" Sam said in an angry hushed tone, looking back in the direction of Isabel's room before returning his angry glare to Dean "She may be your cousin and a royal pain in the ass but she is also a girl and half your size, please be more sensitive and try not to smack her around"

Dean narrowed his eyes at his brother, knowing he was not seriously thinking he would physically hurt their cousin but still upset that Sam was making it sound like he had started it, when in fact, it was Isabel that had started every argument. She always had, he realised, all it would take was an ambiguous comment from Dean, which Isabel would take personally then she would turn around and bite his head off with something cruel. Something she knew would hurt him and was sure to make him snap. He was getting mad just thinking about it. He would fall for it every time, and in the end it would seem like he had picked the fight. He always came out like that bad guy.

"Look, I need to go…away…from here" Dean said grabbing his keys and walking out "I'll be back later"

Sam watched his brother drive off and sat back down on the couch, wondering if he was destined to play the peacekeeper between his brother and cousin forever. He was so tired of it. He didn't understand why they couldn't just go half an hour without snapping at each other. It was true they'd never gotten along well, but they were adults now, and he knew they had to love each other in their own way.

He closed his eyes and dropped his head against the back of the couch "He's gone" He said loud enough for Isabel to hear.

He almost smiled to himself as he heard her door squeak open slowly, and a moment later he felt her weight shift the couch. He opened his eyes and looked sideways at her.

She had changed into jeans and an oversized woolly jumper "You two have got to start getting along" He said gently but seriously "I can't do this anymore"

"I'm sorry Sam" She said "I just…I don't know what it is about him that just…infuriates me"

Sam chuckled "Probably the same thing about you that infuriates him. Do you have any idea how alike you two are?"

"I know" She said now smiling too "Mom said we both turned out like our mothers. They used to fight a lot too"

Sam, always interested in finding out anything at all about a mother he didn't remember, turned on the couch to face Isabel "They did?"

"Yeah, but they were still very close. I don't know how that works. How can you get along and fight all the time?" She frowned in confusion.

"Blood is thicker than water" Sam said, and noticed her blank expression "Family equals unconditional love. Take me and Dean. We are nothing alike, and we fight a bit, yet, there's nothing I wouldn't do for him, and vice versa"

She smiled sadly and looked away "I always wanted a brother or sister"

"I remember you once asked Santa to bring you a sister for Christmas" Sam said smiling, trying to lighten her mood.

It worked and Isabel laughed, remembering "I did. I wanted a twin sister. Just like our moms"

It had helped somewhat that Jane, Isabel's mother, had been Mary's identical twin sister. He would look at her as he grew up and know that if his mother were alive, she would look just like his aunt. It also made sense why his father had avoided visiting Isabel's family like the plague. Jane would constantly remind him of his wife. And Dean might have possibly felt the same, but because Sam didn't remember his mother, he never truly loved her and he never really missed her as a person. He loved and missed his mother for what she represented, a part of his family what would always be missing. He sometimes resented Dean for having memories of her, when he didn't. And secretly, when he was over at Aunt Jane's he would sometimes pretend she was his mother.

"Do you remember her at all?" Sam asked.

"_Your_ mother?" She thought for a second before shaking her head "No, I don't. Although I've heard so many stories about her from my mom, sometimes I feel like I do"

"Dad hardly spoke about her" He said sadly, now wishing he had, so he could feel he knew Mary Winchester, even if through others' memories "I think it hurt him to"

"I imagine it would. My mom was sad for so long. For years she couldn't talk about her without breaking down. But eventually, she was able to remember the good stuff, and not just that she was gone" She looked at Sam seriously "Dad told me once that she was never the same after your mom died. Imagine losing your twin or your wife. Imagine losing the love of your life"

Jessica's face flashed through his mind and he had to swallow the lump in his throat. Isabel noticed and she wondered if she'd said something wrong.

"I can" He said shakily "My girlfriend Jessica…she died a few months ago"

She looked at him in surprise "Oh Sam…I'm so sorry"

He felt immediately more comforted as he felt her hand on his shoulder, and wondered why it felt so easy to confide in her about this. He could hardly speak about it with Dean, and that really had left no one else.

"I was going to marry her, you know?" His eyes had filled with tears but they didn't fall.

"How did she die?" She asked.

"Just like my mom" Sam said.

He didn't have to explain any further. They'd already had the conversation about how his mother had died when they were younger and his father and Aunt Jane had had their legendary fight about how John was rasing his boys. He'd never found out just how much of it Isabel actually believed.

She closed her eyes as it all came together now "Is that why you've left school and joined Dean? You're still trying to find that…thing?"

"We're gonna find it Isabel. We're gonna find it and we're gonna kill it" He said almost vehemently and she looked at him closely.

"And then what Sam?" She asked gently "You'll stop then? Once you've killed it? Or once there's nothing left for you to kill?"

"I don't expect you to understand"

"You think I don't? Some spoilt brat came back blind drunk from a high school dance and decided to take his daddy's Jag for a joyride. My parents died instantly and he walked away without a scratch on him. He didn't even spend one day in jail! All the anger in the world is never going to bring my parents back. Having someone to blame and go after will not bring your mom or Jessica back believe me. And once you find this thing and kill it, and I have no doubt you will, you won't miss Jessica any less"

"Are you saying we should just let it go?" Sam asked in disbelief.

She took a moment to answer, with a question of her own "Are you doing this solely for revenge?"

"It's justice. They deserve justice"

"You're becoming like your dad Sam, like Dean. Fuelled by revenge. Blinded by it. There's more to life than that, and you're missing it. Would your mom and Jessica really want that?"

He remained silent. He'd already had this argument with himself in his head. He'd had this argument with his dad, and with Dean. And he would be lying if he didn't agree with Isabel now. Of course his mother would want a different life for him. She would want for him the life he was leading before Jessica died, before Dean reappeared in his life.

"No, they wouldn't" He said honestly "but I can't stop and I won't. Not until we find our dad and finish this. You know how it feels. I've had everything taken from me Isabel"

She looked at him sadly and shook her head "Not everything. You've got your dad and you've got your brother. They love you Sam, you know they do. And no matter what's happened between us, you'll always have me too. I know it doesn't seem like it, but I do love you. And as hard as it is to believe, I love Dean too"

"Not as hard as you think" He said smiling and wrapping an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to lean against him "We love you too. Even Dean"

"Now I _know_ you're lying"

He laughed and placed a kiss on top of her head "He wanted you to come live with us, did you know?"

She sat up straight and looked at him in disbelief "What?"

"When your parents died, Dean wanted you to come live with us. Dad said no, and they had a huge fight. Huge. Dean stormed off and disappeared for over a week. The first and only time I've ever seen him stand up to dad"

"I always figured if anyone would have wanted me, it would have been you"

Sam shook his head "I didn't want you to live with us. I didn't want our life for you. I didn't even want it for myself. I stayed out of it"

"So many things unsaid" She whispered ruefully, almost to herself and leaned against him again "Think our moms would be happy if they could see us now?"

Sam smiled as he considered what she said "Yeah, they would"


	10. Something about Mary

The rest of the afternoon passed in relative silence. Sam went researching on his laptop for similar cases of missing girls, whilst Isabel rang around college friends she hadn't spoked to in years to see if she could find out anything about Leslie. It appeared however, that Leslie suffered the same pathological need to be alone as Isabel did, and apart from a couple of people she worked with, no one really knew what Leslie DaSilva was doing with her life.

"No one knows anything Sam" Isabel said frustrated as she hung up the phone "She wasn't seeing anyone, there was nothing wrong apparently, although no one can be really sure. She hardly socialised with anyone. Had no friends, really"

Sam shut the laptop and leaned back on the kitchen chair "I'm not finding anything. Girls go missing everywhere all the time. I don't know what to look for and there's nothing in dad's diary"

"That's probably because it's just some sick twisted guy and not some monster or demon!"

She'd always been sceptical and Sam couldn't really blame her, particularly in this case. Nothing was pointing to the supernatural.

"You're probably right" He said.

They heard the Impala pull up the drive way and a minute later the doorbell rang. Sam looked at Isabel, his face pleading for no more arguments. She smiled at him softly to reassure him and walked over to open the door.

Dean stood on the porch for a minute just quietly watching her and she resisted the urge to laugh, because it looked like he was expecting her to pounce on him and gouge his eyes out. It was strange to see Dean Winchester uncomfortable, she realised, and she didn't really like it.

"Truce?" She said holding out her hand. He looked at it with apprehension "It's not gonna bite you Dean"

"Truce" He said, grabbing her hand and flashing her that smile of his.

She moved aside to let him in "What did you find?"

"Nothing" Dean said walking in and taking his jacket off. He tossed it onto the couch where it hung precariously before it fell on the ground. He didn't seem to notice and continued talking "No one saw anything, no one heard anything. You?"

She resisted the impulse to snap at him for flinging his jacket but decided against it. She bit her tongue and picked it up as he walked away, hanging it on the hook by the doorway "More nothing" She said joining the boys in the kitchen "They don't think she was seeing anyone or behaving unusually"

"Think?" Dean asked "Her friends don't know?"

"She kept to herself. Didn't really have any friends"

"I've got nothing too. No obvious connection" Sam said rubbing his eyes "We don't really have much to go on at this point"

"Well" Dean said taking a seat "There _is_ a connection. The disappearance is just like the others. Unexplained and without any clues whatsoever"

"That's hardly enough to crack the case Colombo" Isabel said handing Dean a steaming mug of coffee.

"We can't do anything" Sam said finally.

Silence settled until Isabel broke it, looking at the clock "It's close to 7. I'm going to start dinner. Spaghetti OK?"

"Sounds good" Dean said "I'm starving"

She started dinner preparations. Dean sat at the table going over his voice mail and looking over their dad's diary while Sam helped Isabel with the chopping.

"You're pretty good" Isabel said surprised "You cook much?"

"I used to" He said quietly "I helped Jess a bit"

With their back turned they didn't see Dean's head snap up as he listened to his brother and cousin's conversation intently. Sam never brought up Jess in front of Dean, unless it was in some way directly directed to the demon that had killed her, and here he was casually talking about her with Isabel. Not getting all defensive and quiet.

"Was she a good cook?" Isabel asked.

Sam smiled sadly "No"

Isabel laughed and Sam joined her. Amazed that this was the first time he'd associated laughter with a memory of Jessica.

"But you never told her that, I bet" Isabel said, engaging him as she noticed his mood was light.

"God no" Sam said shaking his head and Isabel chuckled again.

"Well, I'm actually not a great cook either" Isabel said "I can admit it. This…" She pointed to the pan where the sauce was simmering gently "is pretty much the only thing I can make"

"It smells good" Dean said from the table. Sam and Isabel turned to him.

"It's a family recipe" She said watching him closely "Grandma taught it to our moms. My mom taught it to me"

Dean smiled as he vaguely remembered his mother at the kitchen bench, with their dad next to her helping her in pretty much the same way Sam was now helping Isabel as she cooked. The aroma of the rich sauce almost placed him back inside that memory. He could almost hear his parents laughing.

"I remember" He said softly "The smell. I remember mom making it"

"She used to make it all the time" Isabel said "It was your dad's favourite"

She turned back around and continued cooking, noticing that Dean was now lost in a memory of his mother and happier times. She understood. It happened to her as well when she remembered something about her own parents. It was bittersweet.

Sam still watched his brother. It wasn't often that he saw a wide range of emotions on his brother's face and he found it fascinating. When Dean finally noticed his brother looking at him, Sam expected an annoyed or disgruntled expression to take over and even maybe a comment inquiring as to what the hell he was looking at. But Dean surprised him again, smiling gently at his brother as he nodded.

"He used to help her make it" He said gently, not taking his eyes off of Sam "She'd hold you with one arm and stir the pot with her free hand"

The moment was broken again by Isabel when she announced dinner was ready and would Dean clear the table so Sam could set it. Dinner was a casual affair and the conversation was light, only occasionally touching on memories involving their childhood and their parents. Isabel was surprised she knew more about Mary than her own sons did, thanks in large part to her own mother. They had been close and spoke about almost everything.

"Dad never told us how they met" Dean said at one point.

"High school" Isabel said and the boys turned to her expectantly. She continued "Our moms moved to Kansas in their senior year and Mary sat next to John in History. Apparently it was love at first sight"

"Go on" Sam said, his chin resting on his palm. Isabel laughed. He looked like a little boy being told a bedtime story. Dean's expression was slightly more melancholy.

"The next day, your dad decided to ask her out. Except he didn't realise Mary had a twin sister. He asked my mom out instead when he saw her outside the library!"

"No way!" Sam said laughing.

Isabel nodded "It was a long running joke between them. Your dad couldn't tell them apart. Eventually Mary died her hair"

"Mom dyed her hair?" Dean asked.

"Only for a few years" Isabel said "Wait a minute" She stood up and rushed into her room, coming back out with a photo in her hand. She gave it to Dean.

It was a photo of Jane and Mary on Jane's wedding day. Jane was wearing a wedding dress and Mary, the maid of honour, was in a blue bridesmaid dress. It was uncanny, and Dean couldn't pull his eyes away. They were identical. Just like Isabel had said, the only feature differentiating them were Mary's auburn waves. Sam leaned over and looked at the picture. He looked from his mother's image to Isabel.

"You look just like her" Sam said, gesturing to her hair "With her hair dark like that, she looks just like you"

She smiled and nodded "Well, I only inherited my dad's hair colour and cheekbones. Other than that, I've always looked a lot like my mom, and by default, your mom" She looked at the boys "You two are a good mix of both, I think"

"You and Dean have the same eyes" Sam said suddenly as if he'd only just come to that realisation himself.

Isabel and Dean looked at each other. It was true, Dean realised, as he looked into the blue green eyes of his cousin. They had both inherited their mother's eyes, right down to the size, shape and colour. He'd always known Isabel as his cousin but had never actually paid notice to the fact that they shared physical traits, that they did in fact look a little similar if you really paid attention to detail.

They finished dinner with a few more stories, mostly from Isabel about how their mothers would often trade places and drive their own parents crazy. How they would freak out potential boyfriends and play pranks on their friends.

Sam realised he hadn't laughed so much since Jessica had died, and Dean felt a renewed sense of resolve about finding the thing that had killed this amazing person Isabel was talking about.

Once dinner was over and the boys had done the dishes, Isabel sat quietly at the kitchen table going over her weekly planner and appointment book while the boys went into the lounge to watch TV. She went to bed early after going past the boys to ask them if there was anything on the news about Leslie. There hadn't been.


	11. Bad News

AN: Thakyou so much for the reviews. You guys have been really sweet. We're about half way through with this story. Bad stuff will happen. Just warning you. Toodles AT

Work was strange on Monday. Once she had reached the real estate office and settled into her every day routine, it was almost easy to forget everything that had happened over the weekend, and at one point she actually had. It took a phone call from Jack just before lunch and another from Sam at mid afternoon to remind her she hadn't actually dreamed the last two days. When the receptionist at the office asked her about her weekend, she smiled to herself, finally having something interesting to share. She went grocery shopping on the way home, knowing that with two other people in the house, her supplies would not stretch much longer, and as she stacked the bags into her car she smiled to herself. She was actually happy about going home to a not empty house.

It was after 7 when she made it back home, and she rang the doorbell with her nose as she juggled four shopping bags and her briefcase with her arms. Sam opened the door and immediately grabbed the bags from her. She followed him into the kitchen.

"What's that?" She asked surprised when she spotted a huge arrangement of flowers on the kitchen bench.

"Your boyfriend" Dean said pulling the card from the flowers and passing it to her. He raised his eyebrows suggestively at her "You must have been good"

"Good?" She wriggled her own eyebrows at him and raised her head haughtily "I was spectacular!"

"If you weren't my cousin" Dean said in mock wistfulness.

"Sometimes, I wonder if that would really stop you" She said.

"Oh my God" Sam gave them both a scandalized look "You can't say stuff like that!"

Isabel looked at Dean "Why is he so uptight?"

"I'm standing right here!" Sam cried out.

"Sorry" Isabel said turning to face Sam "Why are you so uptight?"

"I'm not uptight. You two have a twisted sense of humour!" Sam said petulantly and started pulling groceries out of the bags.

Dean and Isabel shared a chuckle at Sam's outburst. She opened the card and read it, pulling it away when Dean tried to snatch it off her hand.

"What does it say?" He asked trying to read it over her shoulders.

"None of your business" She said turning around so he couldn't read it.

"Come on" Dean said "We're family, you can tell me"

"No, it's private Dean"

"Is it that bad?" He asked smirking "It's dirty, isn't it?"

"I swear to God Dean, if you keep it up I'll tell you exactly what it says" She threatened.

"Fine" He said finally moving to help Sam unload the groceries.

After dinner they all sat in the lounge room. Sam and Isabel were on the couch and Dean was sitting on the armchair near the fireplace. The phone rang and Isabel went to answer it, moving to the kitchen when she found out it was Jack. They chatted for a few minutes and then she headed back with the boys.

"Booty call?" Dean asked crudely.

"What? No!" Isabel snapped "He just wanted to make sure I got the flowers"

"Are you going to see him again?" Sam asked looking at her, smiling.

"Wednesday night" She said excited like a fifteen year old.

"Why don't you girls save it for the slumber party" Dean said finally, turning the volume up on the TV "You might want to see this"

They froze in the spot as the newsreader came on. A body had been found by hikers that evening. A female body in the woods located on the outskirts of the town. She was believed to be the second girl kidnapped,five weeks ago. The police were now searching the entire woods for signs of the other women. They didn't say how she died.

"Kelly Richardson" Sam said quietly once the report was over.

Dean grabbed a pile of papers that had been sitting on the coffee table and flipped through them. He pulled out Kelly's picture and a notebook, flipping over the pages until he found the one he wanted.

"Kelly Richardson" He started "Twenty-oneyears old, college student and part-time assistant at the campus library. Disappearedfive weeks ago"

"Let me guess, lived alone, no family, no one saw anything" Isabel added sadly.

"Dead ends" He said "Just like the others"

"Except she's the only one murdered" Sam said sitting on the couch.

"Well, they didn't say she was murdered" She said looking from Dean to Sam and desperately clinging to a quickly fading ray of hope "They just said they found her body"

"I think it's a pretty safe bet that something happened to her" Dean said.

"Yeah, but we don't know what" She said "I mean, why out of six girls is this the first one he kills?"

"He might have killed them all Bel" Dean said "They just found Kelly's body first"

She closed her eyes and buried her face in her hands, resting her elbow on her knees "Oh God, Leslie!"

She felt Sam's arms around her and she was silently thankful for the comfort, small as it was "We can't jump to conclusions yet" He said, and Isabel immediately knew that he'd only said it for her benefit.

"We need to find out more" Dean said, pacing up and down the room "We need to know how Kelly died"

"How are you going to do that Dean?" Isabel asked, not looking up.

Dean looked down at her and Sam for a moment before sitting down on the other side of Isabel. The wheels in his head were turning.

"Talk to the police" He said.

She turned to him "Talk to the police?"

"Tell them you knew her from college; saw the news report and want to know what happened"

"Hold on" She said narrowing her eyes "_Me_? You want me to talk to the police?"

"Tomorrow. You talk to the cops, we'll hit the morgue" Dean said looking at Sam, who pursed his lips at him, obviously not all that happy with the plan andanxiously expecting yet another intense argument from his cousin and brother.

"What makes you think they'll tell me anything?" She asked cynically.

"Play scared. Tell them you knew Kelly and Leslie and you're worried there might be a connection. Demand they tell you if they've found anything to connect the victims. Tell them you're worried for yourself"

She wanted to protest and argue, but deep down inside, she wanted to know what the hell was going on too. This wasn't about girls disappearing anymore. These women were dying. Now she was scared and she realised she wouldn't have to play scared when she went to the police, she already was.

She closed her eyes and leaned back against the couch "I'll take tomorrow off. I'm gonna go to bed" She said slowly before standing and heading to her room.

Once Isabel was out of the room Sam and Dean looked at each other.

"What are the chances the others are still alive?" Dean asked.

Sam shook his head sadly "I still don't know if there's anything we can do"

"Maybe not" Dean said, going through his duffel bag and pulling out a black t shirt and navy blue shirt "But that" He added pointing to the black TV screen "was not the full story"


	12. From Bad to Worse

AN: The next few chapters will deal with a little bit of violence. Just a warning.

Isabel woke up the next day, called work to say she would not be coming in today and went for her morning run, finding both boys up and ready to go when she got back.

"I'll just shower and change, won't be minute" She said and ran into her room, suddenly chilled as she remembered what they were about to do.

After changing into a pair of jeans and a baby pink turtleneck jumper, and downing two cups of steaming hot coffee, Isabel felt a lot warmer, and a lot better. She wanted to wear her boots, but the blister on her foot still felt otherwise, so instead she settled on a pair of sneakers. The whole outfit made her look a lot younger than she was.

"I assume we're taking your car" She stated as she watched Dean slip a black leather jacket on.

"Why, you don't like it?" Dean asked confounded, as if the mere idea that someone might not like his car had never entered his mind.

"Are you kidding? I love it" She said, and smiled widely when Dean's face broke into a wide proud smile of his own.

"Yeah, she's beautiful" He said staring out the window of the lounge room where he could see his car on the driveway. Isabel's eyes followed his gaze and she almost laughed.

"OK. Dean?" She said smiling "It's just a car"

His eyes flew back at her sharply "Take that back now!"

She rolled her eyes and slipped on her mauve knee-length raincoat. Sam came back from the kitchen with a few pieces of paper on which he'd scribbled the address for the county mortuary and the local police station.

"OK" He said "I say we drop off Isabel at the police station, then we drive to the morgue" He said grabbing his satchel and turning to Isabel "Give us a call once you're done"

"Alright" She said moving towards the door "We ready?"

"Let's go" Dean said stepping out.

"Shotgun!" Isabel yelled as she pushed her body between the boys rushed out the door stopping next to the passenger door of the Impala.

Sam stammered "What? No…I..." He turned to his brother "Dean?"

Dean raised his arms, indicating there was nothing he could do "She called it first, dude"

Sam narrowed his eyes at Isabel, before closing the front door behind him and sulking all the way to the car. They all jumped in the car and pulled out onto the street.

"I'm nervous" Isabel said suddenly when she could no longer stand the silence, save for the roar of the engine and the oh-so-soothing melodies of Metallica.

"Nervous?" Dean asked.

"Like a turkey at Christmas" She said fiddling with the hem of her coat.

Dean turned towards her briefly "Don't be" He said flashing her a comforting smile "You'll be fine. Just try to find out as much as you can"

"Yeah, well" She said looking out the window "I don't know if I want to know"

"They won't tell you all that much Bel" He said "We'll find out more at the morgue"

She shuddered visibly and felt infinitely grateful that she wasn't going with them "How exactly will you find out anything at the morgue?" She asked curiously.

Sam leaned over the front seats and pulled out two ID cards from the front pocket of his shirt. She looked at them closely, her expression sceptical "Medical students?"

"It's worked before" Sam said putting the IDs back in his pocket "All we need is to get into the morgue, once there we can talk to someone and maybe access the reports"

She turned in her seat and looked from Dean to Sam, an unreadable expression on her face.

"What?" Dean asked finally feeling like he was under scrutiny.

"This is what you do?" She asked curiously, yet with a hint of sadness.

"What do you mean?" Dean asked.

"This" She said gesturing to the car in general "Going from town to town, pretending to be something you're not, visiting morgues? _This_ is your life"

Sam was quiet as he looked down at his feet. When she said it like that, it made him miss his stint at a normal life. Dean however, could feel the judgement in her words and he did not like it. His jaw clenched and he took a deep breath through his nostrils, making a conscious effort to keep his eyes on the road.

"Yeah" He said tersely "This is our life. Why?"

"Because it sucks" She said before realising that even though the sentiment was accurate, she should have phrased it differently.

He glowered at her and she swallowed hard cursing herself in her mind, knowing she had hit some sort of nerve, again. She was about to back peddle and apologise, but he spoke first.

"Good thing you didn't end up with us eight years ago then, isn't it?" He asked maliciously.

She flinched and gasped in surprise, almost as if he'd slapped her with that comment. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Sam's face snap up and stare at Dean in disbelief, then back at her. Her face paled, and she turned again in her seat to look out the window. That had hurt.

Dean noticed and he sighed deeply, running a hand over his face. He looked at Sam's face through the rear view mirror. He wasn't happy with him and his expression told Dean to apologise, and apologise now.

"Yeah" she said quietly "It worked a lot better this way"

"I'm sorry Isabel" Dean said "I didn't mean it"

"Yeah, you did" She said, still not turning to face him "It's OK, I'm not mad"

"I still shouldn't have said it" He said.

There was silence for a moment as they drove into town.

"Drop me off here" She said finally "The station is just across the street"

Dean pulled over and turned in his seat to face her "Isabel?"

"It's fine, Dean" She said with a small smile that never quite reached her eyes "There are a lot of things we still need to get off our chests and out in the open. I know that"

Dean just watched her quietly as she got out of the car. Sam followed her lead and stepped out too.

"You sure you're OK?" Sam asked gently.

"Peachy" She said "I'll call you once I get out?"

"See you soon" Dean said as she walked away from the car. She didn't turn to him but raised a hand and waved it towards him.

Sam got into the passenger seat and pinned Dean with a death glare "You have got to stop losing your temper with her" He said wearily.

"She was baiting me" Dean said pulling out onto the busy street again.

"She wasn't baiting you, Dean" Sam said "You just take everything she says too personally. Think about it logically. To an outsider…this life _does_ suck"

Dean looked at his brother angrily "She didn't think so eight years ago when she wanted to live with us! It didn't suck _then_, did it?"

"She was sixteen Dean!" Sam yelled and Dean looked at him surprised "Her parents had just died and she was alone. She didn't care what we did, she just wanted to be with the only family she had left. You can't see that?"

Dean sighed as he thought about what Sam said "I don't know if we'll ever be able to resolve this Sammy"

"We have to Dean" Sam said determined "She may not be the only family we have, but we are the only family she's got. Put yourself in her place. It's a lonely place"

"She's doing fine" Dean offered weakly.

"I think the antidepressants and sleeping pills beg to differ" Sam pointed out.

"Yeah" Dean said nodding "You're gonna have to talk to her about that"

"Me?" Sam asked.

"You think she's gonna talk about that stuff with me?" Dean asked with a snort.

"Let's just see if we can get through the rest of the day without an argument first. Then we'll broach the serious issues"

No more was said about their cousin as they reached the county morgue. The university IDs worked well. The assistant Medical Examiner took them in and around the facility, telling them about the different instruments and equipment they used.

Sam managed in that way of his, to draw the assistant into an involved discussion as to how one would go about getting into the forensic medicine field and was it anything like CSI. Dean had plenty of time to snoop around, stopping at the dissecting table holding Kelly Richardson's body. A clipboard with her report was resting on a table next to the gurney.

"What are you looking at there son?" The attendant asked, finally noticing Dean.

"Kelly Richardson" Dean said lifting the board "Sounds familiar"

"Yeah" Said the attendant pulling the top of the sheet back slightly to reveal what would once have been a pretty redhead "She's one of the girls that went missing a few weeks back. Campers found her body in the woods last night"

"She was murdered?" Dean asked taking in the bruises marring the dead girl's face and neck.

"Well, yes and no, if you know what I mean"

"I don't" Dean said.

"Obviously those bruises on her face didn't get there by accident son" the assistant said with a smile Dean would have liked no better than to wipe off his face with his fist "Suffered a lot of trauma, but none of it really life threatening"

"Then how did she die?" Sam asked.

"Bled out"

"From the injuries?"

"No, she suffered a hell of a lot, don't get me wrong, this guy tortured her for the entire time he kept her. But like I said, none were fatal. She suffered a massive uterine haemorrhage" He finished pulling the sheet back up again.

"Uterine? How did that happen?" Dean asked not fully following "Was she raped?"

"She was raped alright. Repeatedly" The assistant continued casually. Sam and Dean both winced but he didn't seem to notice "Severe vaginal trauma, but it's really hard to isolate from the post partum trauma"

"I'm sorry, did you say post partum?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. This girl gave birth recently, and by recently, I mean in the last week. She either gave birth or aborted, hard to tell"

"But she wasn't pregnant when she disappeared. It's only been a few weeks" Dean said quickly.

"I would suggest a miscarriage except the kind of internal trauma she's got isn't from a normal miscarriage and like you said, it's only been six weeks. Whatever she was carrying was the size of a six to seven month old foetus. That's what makes this weird." The assistant said shaking his head in confusion then stopped and looked at both men curiously "How did you know she wasn't pregnant when she disappeared?"

Dean and Sam exchanged a look, one that said it was time to go. Dean turned back to the man and shook his head "News never said she was. They would have other wise. OK, well you've been really helpful" Dean started to move towards the door, motioning to Sam to follow him "We better get back to campus now"

"Wait, you have to sign the book at the front desk" The assistant called out weakly.

"We will" Sam yelled back as he and Dean stepped out the door.

They practically ran to the car and pulled out of the car park "Well, one thing's for sure" Dean said "It's our kind of problem"

They stopped at a coffee shop down the road from the police station as the small town was suddenly engulfed with heavy rain. They sat down and ordered coffee while they waited for Isabel to call them.

"It's been over an hour" Sam said looking at his watch "Why hasn't she called?"

Dean rolled his eyes at his brother's over concern "It's raining pretty heavily out there, maybe she melted" He said joking.

Sam shot his brother a withering look, but couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped.


	13. Over Coffee

She'd sat in the dreary police station foyer for over an hour, before someone finally walked over to talk to her.

"Hi ma'am, I'm deputy Stillwell. Can I help you?"

She immediately raised her eyes to him and stood up. His voice was deep and gruff, although not oafish. He was tall, almost as tall as Sam, but unlike Sam, this man had to weigh about two hundred and fifty pounds. He looked to be in his early forties, maybe late thirties. He looked familiar and she figured she must have seen him on the local news.

"Hi, I'm Isabel Bennett, I hope so" she started "I saw on the news you found Kelly's body last night"

"Now Miss Bennett, we're not allowed to divulge information to the public regarding an ongoing investigation"

"I know, it's just that" She started to stammer for effect, and added a look of fear on her face "I knew her Sir. I knew her and I also know Leslie and…and…I'm scared"

"Leslie DaSilva?"

"Yes, I knew them both. I went to college with both of them. Leslie was my roommate freshman year. I'm just wondering if there is some sort of connection. Should I be worried here?"

"Did you know any of the other victims?" He asked, now looking interested.

"No Sir, just those two" She said "But I live alone, and to be honest, I'm worried"

"Is there any family you can stay with?"

"Uh, no. My parents died eight years ago and I'm an only child"

He questioned her for a few minutes about her life, finally telling her that she shouldn't have anything to worry about.

"Just keep your cell phone on you at all times, don't go out on your own and let people know where you're are and where you're going. Best thing you can do is keep low. If at any moment you feel you're being followed or something don't feel right, you call us"

"Do you have any suspects Sir?"

"Unfortunately at this point we do not Miss, but I advice you to avoid any strange men you do not know"

"OK" She said nodding her head "Thankyou officer. Oh, is it possible to be kept updated? If you find out anything about Leslie, please I need to know"

"If you'd like to write down your contact details for me, I'll let you know if we find your friend"

"Thankyou"

She wrote down the details for him and thanked him again before leaving the station. Something didn't sit all that right with her. It felt to her that Stillwell was not being completely upfront. Then again, she wasn't expecting the police to divulge everything about the investigation to a young girl who just came in from the street. She walked to the end of the block and pulled out her cell phone, dialling Dean's number. He answered after three rings telling her to meet them at the coffee shop down the road.

>>>>>

"She's on her way" Dean said to Sam as he put his cell phone back into his pocket.

"How much should we tell her?" Sam asked his brother, worried that what they'd find out would be much too graphic and gruesome for Isabel.

"Play it by ear" Dean said sipping his black coffee and looking out the window.

She came in a minute later and spotted them. She went over and took a seat next to Dean, motioning for the waitress to come over.

"God, it's cold out there" She said rubbing her hands together "And wet"

The blonde busty waitress made her way over to her, fixing her expression into one of barely restrained dislike as she looked at Isabel up and down. Isabel frowned in confusion, wondering what in the world she had done for this woman to detest her.

"Coffee please. Black" Isabel said, and it wasn't until the waitress looked suspiciously from Isabel to Dean that it all fell into place, and she groaned inwardly. She turned to Dean to find him smiling at the waitress. She walked away, but not before winking shamelessly at Dean "Subtle" She said sarcastically.

"Subtlety is a waste of time" Dean said smiling at Isabel "I see something I want, I go for it"

"And you want Miss Trailer Park there?" She said nodding towards the waitress "Is it the bleached hair or the fake boobs that's caught Little Dean's attention?" She finished with a nod towards his lap.

"She happened to be very sweet" Dean said defensively.

"I'll give you $50 right now if you tell me her name" Isabel challenged, knowing that even though he probably spent the entire time he talked to the waitress staring at her chest, he wouldn't have even noticed her name tag, let alone read it.

Sam and Isabel almost laughed at Dean's look of deep concentration "Hot waitress?" He said finally.

"See this coffee cup?" Isabel asked reaching for Dean's coffee cup and holding it in her hand for him to see "The _coffee cup_ isn't as shallow as you"

"You know, for someone who got laid recently, you're awfully cranky" Dean said snatching his coffee back from Isabel.

"Can we please change the subject?" Sam pleaded.

"Sammy, you seriously have to lighten up" Isabel said smiling at her younger cousin "How did you grow up to be such a prude?"

"That's what I always wonder!" Dean said laughing.

"Can we please focus?" Sam snapped "Isabel what did you find out?"

They sobered up and she told them what she'd found out. No connection, other than all girls were around the same age, lived in the same county, and lived alone, with no family.

"No family?" Sam asked.

"Well, no close family nearby" She said "One of them had a grandmother in Florida. Another had an auntie in New York City. But no one the girls kept in touch with, or had seen recently"

"That all?"

"That's all. Deputy Stillwell is in charge of the investigation, and he said he'd call me if he heard or found out anything about Leslie. But from what he said, they're pretty lost. No more bodies were found in the woods, and they still have no suspects"

The waitress came back with her coffee, and Isabel thanked her for it. She felt Dean's elbow nudge her ribs and she looked at him questioningly.

"Go sit next to Sam" Dean said, noticing the waitress was shooting him flirty smiles and Isabel sitting next to him was hindering any possible progress.

She looked at Dean blankly "You're kidding, right?" She asked.

"Am I laughing?"

She scoffed, offended, and moved over to seat next to Sam "This is what you have to put up with? I feel for you"

"Hey, I have an idea" Dean started.

"Is it lonely?" Isabel interrupted, and Sam burst into laughter.

"Laugh it up, go on" Dean said at the laughing couple "I'll just wait here. Take your time"

"I'm sorry" Isabel said sobering up "What did you guys find out?"

Sam and Dean's expressions turned serious again.

"Well, it's definitely our kind of problem" Dean said, and at Isabel's questioning look he continued "Kelly died from a uterine bleed. She gave birth last week"

Isabel frowned "Was she pregnant when she disappeared?"

"Nope" Dean said "She conceived and gave birth in the space of six weeks"

"That's impossible" Isabel said.

"Kitten, nothing is impossible, trust me" Dean said.

"Stop calling me kitten, or I'll start calling you honey bunny again" She threatened.

"You can call me honey bunny if you like" He said nonchalantly.

Realising that a conversation with Dean would be delayed with many comments such as those, she turned to Sam "What else?" She asked.

"She was pretty beaten up, but none of her injuries were fatal"

"So, she somehow got pregnant, she…wait a minute" She said, a horrible realisation hitting her "She was raped, wasn't she?"

"Yeah" Sam said looking at Dean. He didn't know how much more he should tell her.

"So this guy gets her pregnant, she gives birth or aborts, she then dies so he dumps her body in the woods" Dean finished.

"Do you think he's doing this to all the other girls?" Isabel asked horrified.

"Quite possibly" Dean said "But I guess it's comforting to know his main objective isn't to kill them"

"What about the baby?" She asked.

"Don't know. Didn't find it" Dean shrugged.

"We need to research this" Sam said when he could tell that Isabel was gearing herself for a fresh batch of questions "We need to go back home and see what kind of…thing is capable of this"

They agreed that they should go back. The waitress came around again and they asked for the cheque.

"You sure you don't want a coffee to go, honey bunny?" Isabel asked Dean sweetly, as she reached across the table and rested her hand on Dean's. The waitress saw it and she shot Isabel a death glare before turning around and walking off.

"I will make you pay for that" Dean said pulling out the car keys from his pocket and standing up.

"You're living in my house, I'm already paying for it" She said with a smile to let him know she was kidding "How much worse could my life possibly get"


	14. Teamwork

Considering the seriousness of what they'd just discovered, the mood in the car back to the house was pretty light. The tension that had started to emerge on the way to town was dormant, and even though they new it would come out and have to be resolved at some point, everyone was quite content to hold off, for now.

Once they got back to the house, Isabel started to make lunch.

"Grilled cheese sandwiches?" She asked the boys as she opened the fridge.

"Perfect" Sam said, sitting down at the kitchen table and unfolding his laptop.

"Need help?" Dean asked, and she fought the urge to faint.

"No, thanks" She said pulling out ingredients

The next half hour passed quietly and uneventfully. Dean gathered all of his and Sam's dirty laundry and dumped it into the hamper in the laundry, before sitting down at the kitchen table and checking his voicemail.

"Anything?" Sam asked.

Dean knew he was talking about their dad "No. All's quiet"

With everything that had happened in the last few days and the tension that was always hovering under the surface between Isabel and them, the last thing either Sam or Dean wanted to do was bring up the topic of their absent father in front of her. It had not escaped their attention that Isabel had not even asked about John. It was obvious that she just flat out did not care in the slightest where he was or if he was OK.

Isabel was quiet while she made lunch, every now and then looking over at the boys. She wanted to clear the air about what had happened earlier that morning, but felt that it wasn't the right time yet. With all the stuff that seemed to be happening, she was beginning to think there would be no right time.

She was hopeful though, especially when Dean walked over and helped her set the table. They all ate silently. Sam still looking at his computer, Dean looking over his dad's diary and Isabel was looking through her appointment book, deliberating on whether she should take some time off this week while Sam and Dean were around or not.

"I think I know what's doing this" Sam said from his seat at the table, his face looking away from the screen to his brother and cousin.

"What you got?" Dean asked moving to stand behind Sam.

"Incubus"

"The band?" Isabel asked as she started clearing the plates.

"No" Sam said slowly "as in the male version of a succubus"

"What are you talking about?" She asked, leaning against the kitchen bench.

"It's essentially a demon" Dean explained "Traditionally they come to women at night, seduce them"

"Traditionally?" She asked.

"Yeah, in folklore, legend. This guy is different though. A less…mythical version" Sam continued "He takes women with him. He keeps them"

"He collects them" Isabel offered.

Sam nodded "That's right. Think about it. They're all healthy, young, pretty girls. He's using them to breed. That's why he keeps them. That's why he got rid off Kelly. It was only because she died"

"Oh my God. Like his own little harem or science experiment" Isabel said, her face paling "That's more disgusting than I originally thought"

"Wait a minute though" Dean interrupted "You said he takes them? There's never bee any sign of struggle. How does he just take them?"

"Incubi are though to be able to come to women as someone they know" Sam explained.

"Shape shifter?" Dean asked thinking of the last time they'd dealt with one of those. He was not in the mood to go through that again.

Sam shook his head "No, I think he makes people think he's someone they know, someone they trust"

"Kinda like hypnosis?" Isabel said "Physically he's still himself?"

"Yeah" Sam said "And he's keeping these girls until they…outlive their usefulness"

"You mean until they die" Isabel said, beginning to understand.

Dean frowned, shaking his head "If there was a demon walking around town snatching women, how come no one's seen anything weird?"

"He must have a human form" Sam said looking through some of his printouts "Maybe he's half human half demon"

"So he looks like a human normally. We're not looking for some freaky looking monster thing?" Isabel asked.

"It's not a big town" Sam said pulling up a map of the county on his screen "It's got to be someone new. Someone who may have moved here recently"

"I could probably find out about that" Isabel offered walking over to where the boys were "I'm in real estate. What would I look for?"

"Single men" Dean suggested "Any who've moved here in the last three months, no more recent than seven weeks"

"Shouldn't be a long list" She said "There are only three agencies in town. I'll get right on it first thing in the morning"

"In the mean time" Sam said, returning to his computer "I'm going to look for anything similar that may have happened in other towns again cross referenced with dead bodies and or girls that may have escaped. See if this thing has done this before"

Sam worked at his computer all day, while Isabel trundled around the house tidying up, doing the laundry and planning the rest of her week. Dean had made himself comfortable on the couch, watching TV for the rest of the day. Sam figured his brother was finally able to unwind after months, or rather, years, of being on the road. He hadn't see Dean so content in a very long time.

He looked at Isabel every now and then as she sat across the table from him, scribbling away on her weekly planner, and smiled to himself again. She too looked happy about them being there, and he wasn't really all that surprised. He knew that the initial reunion wouldn't go smoothly, and he knew that it would take a little while for her to warm up to the fact that her cousins were back in her life. But he also knew that she had missed them terribly, and stubborn as she was, like Dean, she had a good kind heart, like Dean. He knew in his heart that everything would be sorted out before they left for the road again.

Isabel caught Sam staring at her, and she took her reading glasses off, setting them down on the table and looked at Sam with a curious smile on her face.

"What?" She asked.

"Nothing" Sam shook his head and smiled as his eyes returned to the screen before him "It's just that…this…this is nice"

She looked at him strangely "Researching a psychopathic demon rapist is nice?"

"No, I meant…us here. Seeing you after so long. It's nice. I missed you" He said sincerely "Despite the reasons and circumstances, I'm glad we're here"

She took a deep breath and watched him for a minute "Can I be honest with you?" She asked and Sam nodded "I'm glad too"

His smile brightened "I know, I could tell"

She laughed softly "I wasn't so happy at the beginning" She confessed.

"I know, I could tell" Sam repeated.

"But I realise now that I've missed you guys too. I've been living alone for so long now; I've forgotten what it's like to need anyone"

"But you've had boyfriends before right?"

She shook her head and slipped her glasses back on "Never anything serious. No close friends. I have…uh…trust issues"

"Is Jack any different?"

"I don't know yet" she said "I'll push him away soon enough though, just you watch"

"I think we've all been somewhat damaged" He said comfortingly.

"I have to agree with you there" She said "There's a lot of baggage in this family"

"How's the brain trust going?" Dean asked Sam as he stepped into the kitchen.

Sam sighed and picked up the note pad he'd been scribbling on "Found something" He said showing Dean his notes "This has happened before. Girls missing in the space of a few weeks, a couple found dead just like Kelly"

Dean read aloud "Small towns in Arizona, Rhode Island and Oregon"

"Oh God" Isabel said "all over the country"

"Could be more. They are all about a year apart, girls start vanishing for a couple of months, then nothing is heard again. He packs up and moves" Sam said.

"Once they all die?" Isabel asked.

"Or once someone's close to finding them" Dean suggested "what about the…babies?"

"I don't think any of the pregnancies have been successful" Sam said shaking his head "Whatever kind of demon he is, he can impregnate human women, but they can't carry the pregnancy to term"

"And he just keeps trying and trying" Isabel said as her stomach churned "And once he's moved on from here, he'll go somewhere else and try again"

Dean stood up and looked at her, his expression stern "No, he won't"


	15. Sleeping with the Enemy?

When Isabel woke up the next morning, Dean and Sam were still asleep, so she decided to go to work without waking them up. In agreement with Sam's orders however, she left a note on the whiteboard in the kitchen that she was off to work and wouldn't be back until after six, and that they could call her cell if they needed to contact her.

Finding out about men who'd recently moved into town was simple. It was a pretty small and uneventful town, so single men moving there were quite rare. In fact, she only found four who fit the profile and the timeline. She looked down at her list and frowned. She recognised two of the men, Jack and deputy Stillwell. She eliminated them immediately and decided not to tell Dean or Sam. Contacting the other two was easy.

Frank McInnes had relocated from Florida three months previously, and when she rung him a little girl picked up. She sounded no more than ten years old. After speaking to her for about 5 minutes she discovered that Robert was a single father, recently divorced who'd moved into the area to be closer to his ex wife and daughter. She crossed him off the list.

She rang Michael Goulburn next. He turned out to be a 70 year old retiree, who had just lost his wife and moved to the quiet town because his son lived there with his family. She crossed him off the list when he told her he'd moved from California where he'd lived his entire life, and she later confirmed it.

She came home that evening to find Dean and Sam making dinner. She feigned disbelief, and told them she'd shower first and then they could eat and discuss what they had each found out.

"I've found two names" She said, looking down at her plate and wondering if she'd be able to keep dinner down. She figured they'd attempted some sort of chicken casserole. "But I don't think they're the guy…the thing"

"You sure?" Dean asked. He seemed to be having trouble swallowing his own food down.

"No, but you can pay them a visit tomorrow" She said sliding a post it note with both men's addresses and phone numbers along the kitchen table to him. Sam picked it up and looked at them.

"That's it? Just two?" Sam asked.

"It's not New York City, Sam" She said "Single men don't dream of living here"

"What about Jack?" Dean asked suddenly.

She looked at him sharply "What about him?"

"Did he move here recently?" Dean insisted.

She wondered from his tone if there was something he knew that she didn't. She had the nagging feeling that even though she'd insisted it wasn't Jack from the start, they'd checked him out.

"Yeah, but again, it's not him"

"Where did he move from?"

She took a deep breath and dropped her fork loudly "Why don't you just tell me where he's moved from Dean, since you obviously know"

"Oregon" He said, now looking at her closely "Near Portland, where the last disappearances happened"

"I'm not going to say it again, it's not Jack" She said forcefully "I think I would now if the man I'm seeing is a demon"

"You'd be surprised" Sam said.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" She was starting to lose her patience "You intentionally looked him up, didn't you?"

"And you intentionally left him off the list" Dean pointed out.

"Because it's not him!" She stood up and picked up her plate, walking over to the sink and dropping it "The deputy was on the list too, you know? Think _he_ may be your demon?"

"Deputy Stillwell?" Sam asked with narrowed eyes.

"Yes" she said turning around to face him "Look, we obviously have to expand our search"

"Isabel, how well do you really know Jack?" Sam asked seriously.

It was the concern in his voice, devoid of malice, that made her really consider his question. She didn't know Jack well, she thought to herself honestly. She'd only know him for a little while, and he was very closed off. In fact, she realised, he hardly talked about himself. She'd been an open book with him, but she didn't really know much about him.

"I'm actually going to Jack's tonight" She said with finality then continued before Sam, who had opened his mouth to protest, had a chance to start "I will have my phone on"

She thought about what Sam and Dean had said all the way to Jack's place, infinitely glad he wasn't picking her up from her own place, as she was sure that both her cousins would undoubtedly interrogate him endlessly.

"When did you move to Illinois?" She asked him as she walked around his place, snooping around as Jack finished getting ready in his room. They were going to the movies tonight.

"About three months ago" He yelled from his bedroom "your cousins still around?"

"Yeah, can't get rid off them. They're like a couple of stray puppies" She said as she opened the linen closet and found what she knew to be hiking gear. Suddenly she remembered the body found in the woods, near the hiking trail. Her heart skipped a beat as she struggled to keep her voice steady "You go hiking much?"

"Yeah, love it" He said "Went all the time in Oregon"

"Oregon?" She asked shakily, remembering the other states Sam had discovered the demon had been in "I didn't know you were from there?"

"I'm not. I lived there for a while. Ages ago. I'm originally from Arizona" He said joining her in the lounge room "But I've pretty much lived all over the country"

"You know Jack, I'm not feeling very well" She said grabbing her stomach and groaning "The boys made dinner tonight and I don't think it's sitting well"

"Do you want to lie down?" He asked gently "Maybe some water?"

"No" she said "I'll be fine, I just need to go home. Can I call you tomorrow and reschedule?"

"Of course" He said in concern.

She arrived home again to questioning looks from both Dean and Sam. She had debated with herself the entire drive home on whether she should tell the boys or not. She had decided against it. At this moment she might very well be dealing with coincidences and she would give Jack the benefit of the doubt.

"That was quick" Dean said.

She wasn't in the mood for jokes "I'm not feeling well, I'm going to bed"

"What was that about?" Sam asked Dean once Isabel had disappeared into her room.

"Who the hell knows?" Dean shrugged and turned back to the TV. He shook his head and whispered dryly "Women"


	16. Dr Winchester

AN: Thanks for the reviews guys. I apologise for the delay. It's been one of those weeks, both at work and at home. Toodles.

The following day went pretty much the same. She avoided a couple of mid morning phone calls from Jack, as she struggled to keep her paranoia in check. She felt better by mid afternoon, her anxiety towards the whole 'Jack situation' dissipated, as had her irritation at both her cousins for putting it there in the first place.

Just after lunch, her cell phone rang. She sighed in relief. It was Sam.

"Sam, is everything OK?" She asked into her cell.

"They found another one" He said "She's alive, at the county hospital"

"Who is it?" She asked anxiously as Leslie's face popped into her head.

"I don't know yet, but we're on our way now" He said and she could indeed hear the sound of the Impala's engine in the background "Meet you there?"

In a flash of movement, she picked up her keys and handbag, leaving her office in a rush, amidst confused and curious looks from her coworkers. She jumped into her car and drove the 20 miles to the hospital like a maniac. When she arrived, there was a lone camera crew there, clearly waiting from some sort of statement from the police or hospital staff. She ran in and found Deputy Stillwell with another couple of police officers in the admission lobby of the emergency room. He spotted her and walked over.

"Miss Bennett" He said tilting his head toward her in salute.

"Sir" She said quickly "I heard you found one of the girls"

He looked at her suspiciously "Yes ma'am, although I'm afraid it's not your friend"

"Can you tell me who it is?" She pleaded.

"The first girl" He said after a moment of hesitation "Catherine Dupont"

Isabel vaguely remembered the name "Is she alright?"

"The doctors are seeing to her now Miss, I'm afraid I can't tell you anymore"

He walked away from her with another tilt of his head and Isabel sat down on one of the chairs in the otherwise empty waiting room. A nurse came by at one point and asked her if she was waiting for someone.

"Just here for Catherine" Isabel said.

"Oh, are you family" The nurse asked her "Because we haven't been able to locate anyone yet"

Isabel saw her window of opportunity "Cousin" She said quickly "Can you tell me anything?"

"She's pretty shaken up" Said the woman sympathetically, taking a seat next to Isabel "She hasn't been able to say much yet. They're not sure if they can save the baby"

"Baby" Isabel asked weakly.

The nurse looked at her confused "She's pregnant. You didn't know?"

"Oh God" Isabel had a sick feeling in her stomach, and her Caesar salad was suddenly not sitting all that well "When can I speak to her?"

"The police will want to speak to her first" The nurse said gently "I'll let you know when she's up again, honey"

Isabel found herself alone again, and after half an hour of sitting by with her eyes closed and her head leaning against the wall behind her, she felt movement next to her. She opened her eyes slowly and found Sam sitting looking at her.

"Where have you been?" She asked him.

"Gathering information" He said "Catherine Dupont, the first girl to go missing"

"I know, I spoke to the deputy" She said "Also spoke to a nurse. She's pregnant too. Where's Dean?"

At that very moment Dean walked into the room. Her eyes widened in surprise and she looked from Sam to Dean. He was wearing a white lab coat, and had a stethoscope around his neck. She almost laughed.

"You've got to be kidding" She said "Dean, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"That's Dr Winchester, thank you very much" He said, sitting down on a chair across from Sam and Isabel.

Isabel took a deep breath "What have you found, Dr Winchester?"

"Not much" He said seriously "I tried to speak to her but…she's gone"

"She died?" Isabel asked horrified.

"No" He said lowering his voice to a whisper "I couldn't make sense of anything. She's completely lost it. Nuts"

"How did she get here?" Sam asked.

"She escaped somehow. Ran through the woods until she came across some hikers" Dean explained "She's been hysterical since. Seems she was drugged with something, they're still trying to figure out what. She's sedated now"

Isabel felt a jolt run through her. The hiking trail again, and her thoughts once more went to Jack. She was starting to hate this paranoia, and she was again torn as to whether to tell her cousins or not.

"Did you check the names I gave you?" She asked.

"Yeah" Sam said "You were right, it's not them"

"What now?" Dean asked "She's our only lead. We need to talk to her and find out what happened"

They decided Isabel would stay at the hospital, and hopefully get a chance to talk to either the police again, or Catherine's doctors. Maybe even Catherine herself. Sam and Dean would go to the woods and see what they could find.

Isabel watched them leave and picked up one of the trashy tabloid magazines sitting on a table across from her. Her mind was elsewhere though, making it impossible to take in a single word of what she was reading. She was attempting to go through the first article for a third time when a pair of brown leather boots materialized at her feet. She looked up expectantly.

"Have you been telling the hospital staff you're Catherine's cousin?" Deputy Stillwell asked her, his brow furrowed into a stern frown.

"I'm sorry Sir" She said apologetically "I'm just worried and I figured it would be the only way to find out what's going on"

"You know, it's a felony to lie about serious stuff like that" He said firmly, but there was a slight twinkle in his eye, letting her know she was in no real trouble.

"I know, I'm sorry" She said "Is her family here?"

"We haven't been able to locate any close relatives" He said shaking his head sadly "It appears Miss Dupont does not have any close living relations"

"Oh" Isabel said quietly "What will happen to her now?"

"She'll be moved up to the psychiatric ward once she's stabilized" He said taking a seat next to Isabel "Then we'll see if we can get a statement and find out what happened out there"

"Poor thing" Isabel said thinking of how alone Catherine was and realizing she was in a very similar situation "I know what it's like to be alone"

"All alone too Miss Bennett?"

"Please, call me Isabel" She said smiling "And yes, I do. My parents died a few years ago and I'm an only child"

"And you've been alone all this time?"

"I'm a bit of a loner myself" She said weakly.

"I'm sorry" He said sympathetically "If it makes you feel better, I can relate. Been on my own for a while now"

"Are you any closer to finding out who's doing this?" She changed the subject, getting the weird feeling the deputy might be flirting with her.

He shook his head in defeat "We'll be closer once she comes around. In the meantime Isabel, go home" He said "I promise I'll let you know if we find out anything else"

She thanked him and stood up to leave. She walked to her car and sat inside for a while. It was getting dark. She started the engine finally, and as she was about to pull out of the parking lot, her heart skipped a beat as she recognized Jack's car pulling into he parking lot. She killed the engine and watched as Jack got out of his car and rushed into the hospital. She'd be lying to herself if she said her cousins suspicions hadn't been somewhat justified, and now looking at Jack she realized they were probably not only justified, but accurate. What was Jack doing there? She knew she was being impulsive, but if there was ever a trait she shared unequivocally with Dean, apart from stubbornness and a quick temper, it was impetuousness. She didn't even give herself a chance to think it twice. She drove out of the hospital parking lot and headed for Jack's house, parking her car on the street, rather than the driveway.

After carefully breaking in through a window, she stepped into Jack's house and started looking around, wondering where to begin, and for what. She searched through closets and drawers but it wasn't until an hour later, as she was looking under his bed, that she discovered a shoebox filled with pictures. They were photos of Jack with various people. Parents, friends, she figured, even girlfriends perhaps. But one of them stopped her cold. She found a picture of a man and a woman. It looked like they were hiking in the mountains and it was taken before a sign. She put her glasses on and read it 'Mt Hood National Park'. She knew that was in Oregon. A paper clip held the photo together with some newspaper clippings about a young girl disappearing. It was the girl from the picture. Her boyfriend had been killed and the girl had vanished. It was dated a year ago.

She saw a few more clippings, some that included similar headlines, but with Catherine Dupont's picture, Kelly Richardson, even Leslie. She didn't get a chance to look through them carefully before she heard the sound of a car pulling up outside. She stood up and looked through the window to see Jack running up to the house.

"Crap!" She cursed under her breath, knowing that he had to have seen her car parked outside, and knew that she was there.

She waited until she heard the front door unlock, pocketed the photos and clippings she was holding in her hand and snuck out the bedroom window.

"Isabel?" She heard him call out to her as she landed on the lawn.

She didn't turn around though, instead sprinted to her car and sped off, looking at her rearview mirror to see Jack running onto the road. He was just staring after her.

Please R&R


	17. Busted!

As Isabel sped back home, she wondered if she should call the police, but eventually decided against it. She didn't know if she had enough evidence to prove Jack had anything to do with the girls' disappearances, and she didn't want to risk the girls' lives. She pulled onto the side of the road and dialed Dean's cell.

"Dean?" She yelled into the phone as she heard him pick up.

"Isabel?" He asked "What happened?"

"Where are you?" She asked.

"We're on our way back" He said looking at Sam, who for a change was driving "What's wrong?"

"Meet me at home. I think I've got something" She said all in one breath.

She quickly hung up and kept driving. Her phone rang four times. Once it was Dean, but three of those missed calls were from Jack. She decided against answering, not knowing what to say. She reached her home and her heart leapt in relief to find Dean's car already there. Dean and Sam rushed out to meet her as she pulled in.

"What have you found?" Dean asked.

She ran into the house, motioning for them to follow her in. Once they were inside she shut the door behind her, locking it and leaning back against it as she tried to catch her breath.

"Isabel, what happened?" Sam asked.

"I saw Jack at the hospital" She said panting.

She ran into the lounge room and the boys followed her in, looking at each other in confusion as she peeked out through the blinds and onto the street.

"What was he doing there?" Dean asked.

"I don't know, I didn't ask him" She said turning to face them again "He didn't see me. I saw him go in and I went to his place. I broke in and searched…"

"You _what_?" Dean interrupted.

"What did you find?" Sam asked.

"I found this" She pulled out the picture she'd found of the girl, together with some of the clippings and held them out to boys. Dean grabbed them and looked at them "He came home, so I just took them and ran"

"Did he see you?" Asked Sam.

Her face was now a mask of fear and despair "Yes, and there's more" She looked from Dean to Sam anxiously "He moved here recently from Portland, like you said, around the time of the first disappearance and there's all this mountain and hiking gear at his place. I think he may be involved somehow"

"You think?" Dean asked sarcastically passing the pictures to Sam. He turned and knelt next to his duffel bag which was resting on the floor next to the TV stand "We should go find him"

Isabel watched and her face paled as he pulled out a shotgun "Are you going to kill him?"

"First we find out where he's keeping the girls" He said as he loaded the weapon "Then we kill him"

"Wait, Dean" She said grabbing his arm "We don't know for sure if it's him"

He looked at her "I think we can safely assume…" He started.

"There's no safely about it" She protested "You're just assuming"

"What do you want to do then Isabel?" He asked brusquely as he stood again, passing a small pistol to Sam.

Her cell phone rang and she looked at it with a sense of fear. She took a deep calming breath and answered it. It was Deputy Stillwell. Sam and Dean watched her closely, concern on their faces as they watched their cousin's face crumble and tears fall down her cheeks. She hung up the phone and looked at them sadly.

"Catherine's dead" She said "They think she may have killed herself"

"Like hell she did" Dean said as he cocked his shotgun "Bet you anything Jack was at the hospital tying up loose ends. He needed to shut her up"

"Dean, I don't think Jack is capable of doing this" Isabel pleaded as she wiped the tears with the back of her hand.

"Isabel, you've just met this guy"

"Something tells me it's not him" Her voice was seconds away from breaking "Dean, I've slept with this man. It can't be him. Please, let me go with you" She saw that Dean's stern expression was unwavering

"No"

She tried Sam "Sam?"

"I'm with Dean on this Bel" Sam said, although his tone was gentler than his older brother, still left no room for argument.

"Please?" She pleaded one more time hating that she sounded so desperate.

"Isabel, for all you know he's just been playing you and you are next on his list" Dean said shaking his head at her "You are staying right here"

The three of them froze mid argument as a pair of headlights illuminated the lounge room and they heard a car stop at the front of the house. Isabel made a move towards the window, only to be stopped by Sam's firm grip on her arm. She tried to shake him off, knowing in the back of her mind that it was no doubt Jack, and if she didn't diffuse the situation, Dean, who was now standing by the door with his shotgun loaded, cocked and ready to fire, could potentially kill him. She opened her mouth to protest as Sam's grip tightened and she looked at him questioningly. He looked down at her harshly and almost threw her on the couch.

"Don't move" He said quietly but deadly serious.

"Sam" She warned him desperately before turning to Dean "Dean, please don't do anything stupid"

The doorbell rang and Dean motioned Sam to open it, while he moved to the other side. Sam opened the door and Jack walked in, immediately spotting Isabel sitting on the couch. He moved forward before flinching and turning around in surprise as the front door slammed shut loudly behind him. He back up a few steps when he faced the barrel of Dean's shotgun.

"What the hell is this?" Jack asked Dean, before turning around to look at Isabel.

Isabel sat on the couch, unmoving. It was all so surreal.

"What were you doing in the hospital?" Dean asked.

"What was _I_ doing at the hospital?" Jack scoffed back "What the hell were _you_ doing in my house?" He asked Isabel accusingly.

She stood up but didn't make a move towards him "I saw you at the hospital this afternoon. I thought you might have had something to do with Catherine, so I went to your house to check it out"

Jack looked at her for a few seconds "You think I'm the one responsible for those missing girls?" He asked in disbelief, his eyes not leaving Isabel's. It was almost as if he'd forgotten there were two armed men in the same room "You really think that?"

Isabel swallowed and shook her head in confusion "I don't know" She said in frustration "I saw pictures, with clippings about the other girls in Oregon. The hiking gear…"

"I didn't do this!" He yelled taking a step towards her. He froze as he felt the end of Dean's shotgun barrel press against his spine

"That's close enough" Dean warned him. Sam moved around to stand closer to Isabel, who seemed unaware that there had been any movement at all.

"Just explain it to me Jack" She pleaded "There's obviously a connection"

Jack let out a deep breath and closed his eyes "Think you can call off your bodyguards"

She looked around to Sam and Dean, but both boys shook their heads at her in the negative. Somehow she didn't think they'd budge on this.

"Sorry" She said.

Jack opened his eyes and looked at her, a wounded expression on his face and Isabel knew right there and then, that even if Jack had no involvement in the disappearances, any chance they may have had as a couple was pretty much shattered.

"My sister went missing last year" Jack started, his voice devoid of emotion, as if he'd practiced this same speech before "That picture you saw was taken three years ago when she moved to Portland. That was the last time I saw her"

"You lived in Portland" Dean stated.

"I moved there when I found out she disappeared" He continued looking at Isabel "I wanted to know what happened to her. I collected clippings about the other girls that went missing hoping there'd be a lead, a connection. Months went by and then nothing was heard again"

"Why are you here now?" Sam asked curiously.

"I moved here after the second girl went missing. I recognized the pattern. Whoever's doing this, they've done it before in other towns" He took a deep breath "I just want to know what happened to my sister. I wanted to talk to Catherine today. I couldn't get much out of her, but from what she said, there are other girls where she was being kept"

"You spoke to her?" Dean asked, still not lowering his weapon.

"Yeah" Jack said guiltily "I snuck in. But she wasn't making much sense. I thought I'd try again tomorrow"

Sam and Dean shared a look, and Dean eventually lowered his shotgun, seemingly satisfied that Jack was not involved with Catherine's death.

"Catherine died this afternoon" Dean said.

Jack whirled around to face him "What?"

"She killed herself" Dean said.

"How?" Jack sounded unconvinced, just as they all had when they'd first heard of Catherine's supposed suicide.

'We don't know" Sam said "The police didn't say"

"The police" Jack snorted derogatorily "They're not doing anything! I've been following their investigation. They should have called in the FBI by now"

"They might now that they have two bodies" Dean said.

Jack suddenly eyed the two men suspiciously before turning to Isabel "What's _your_ interest in this?"

Isabel saw Sam and Dean share a look and she knew immediately that they were milliseconds away from launching into their incubus-demon-ghost hunter storyline and she beat them to it, not wanting Jack to think they were some sort of psycho family.

"They heard about the disappearances and were worried about me on my own" Isabel said casually "Especially since I know one of the girls"

"You do?" Jack asked.

Isabel nodded "Leslie"

Jack nodded too and then turned to Dean "Am I free to go now?"

Dean looked to Sam then Isabel, who nodded her head. She couldn't do this right now.

"Go" Dean said, motioning to the door.

"I'll call you once I've cooled off" Jack said to Isabel, giving her once final angry look before storming out.

The three of them were quiet as they listened to Jack's car speed off. Isabel was the first to speak.

"20 bucks I never hear from him again" She said with bitter humor.

"If it's any consolation" Dean said "I think he was telling the truth"

"You _think_? Dean, you pointed a loaded gun at him! I distinctly remember telling you not to do anything stupid" She said sarcastically as she stood up "You probably didn't hear me with your head stuck so far up your ass"

"Just taking precautions" He said defensively.

"You are _not_ Dirty Harry" She said walking to the kitchen.

"Maybe you should stay away from her tonight" Sam said once he and Dean were alone. The sound of pans clattering and cupboards banging reached him "Maybe we both should"


	18. The Final Straw

AN: Something weird happened at the end of the last chapter when I uploaded it. But not to worry, I've fixed it. Sorry.

It was Friday again, but instead of being happy about that fact she was just glad the week was over. It had been crap and it seemed that it would get worse before it got better. She finished work and reluctantly drove over to her weekly therapist appointment. She wasn't really in the mood to share the events of last week. And she wasn't really sure if she wanted to bring up the fact that her cousins were even here.

The session started and she was starting to relax as the clock approached the end of the hour. Her calm was shattered by her therapist.

"Are your cousins still with you?" Dr Gilman asked her, his eyes watching her closely through his thick glasses.

She was floored "What?"

"I was wondering why you haven't told me about them"

She swallowed and felt blood drain from her face "How did you know?"

"They dropped by earlier this week" He said casually"They were worried about you"

"Oh my God" She whispered.

"Don't worry Isabel, I didn't tell them anything" He said trying to calm her down "You know I wouldn't break your trust like that"

"How did they even know about you?" She asked aloud, trying to figure it out in her head and then it finally hit her. Her prescriptions "I _knew_ someone had been in my drawers"

She closed her eyes and tried to control her anger. It was blinding, hot and threatened to overwhelm her. Her cousins had gone through her things and found her medication, and instead of asking her about it they'd gone to see her therapist, behind her back. They'd known for days and hadn't said anything. So much for the trust they were trying to rebuild.

She didn't even stay until the end of the hour. She grabbed her purse and yelled something behind her back about paying him for the session the following week, before she rushed out of the office and ran to her car. She hoped her anger would subside before she reached home, but instinctively knew it wouldn't.

She stormed into the house and found them both in the lounge room watching TV. She snatched the remote viciously from Sam and switched off the TV.

"Hey, we were watching that!" Dean protested.

That did it. She flung the remote at him, and he dodged it, just missing his head by a couple of inches.

"You son of a bitch!" She screamed at Dean.

"Whoa, calm down!" He said standing up from his seat "What are you talking about?"

"Don't play innocent with me Dean. You looked through my things. You talked to my shrink?"

"Isabel" Sam started, knowing that if this wasn't handled well it would all end badly.

"You too Sam" She screamed "How dare you?"

"We just wanted to know if you were OK" Dean said.

"I am not one of your jobs!" She said through clenched teeth "My life is none of your business"

"It is our business, you're family!" Sam said.

"Oh now I'm family._ Now_?" She asked hysterically "For eight yearsyou couldn't give a crap about me, but now you're suddenly interested?"

"Why didn't you tell us you were struggling?"

"I _had_ to tell you? My parents died and I was left alone! The only family I had left turned their back on me! How was I _not_ going to have issues?" Her eyes were filling up with tears "Top that off with two years in foster care! What do you think happened there, huh? Not all evil is supernatural, you know?"

Dean had never thought of that. He hadn't even known she'd been in foster care "I'm sorry, we didn't know"

"No you didn't know! You never bothered to find out either!" She cried "It took everything I had for me to get where I am today. You come in eight years later, after I've put my life back together and you try to fix me? Well, sorry boys but you're eight years too late!"

"Dad didn't want our kind of life for you" Sam said "He was right. It wasn't safe"

"I would have been safer with you!" She finished pointing at them.

Silence settled and all three were looking down at the ground, coming to terms with all that was being said.

"I really don't think I can handle you being here anymore" She said finally.

Sam looked at Dean desperately. He knew where she was going with this "Isabel"

"I want you out" She said looking at them coldly.

"No" Dean said plainly.

She looked at him, clearly not amused by his over confidence. If anything, her eyes flashed in even more cold anger, and when she spoke Sam almost shivered.

"If you don't leave right now" She started in a voice so calm it betrayed the threat and fury behind it, only her eyes showed that "I will call the police"

Sam knew she meant it, and it wasn't the psychic part of him that told him she wasn't lying. It was the part that had always been attuned to people. He knew she was furious, but more than that he knew that the fact she wasn't screaming and crying, but making the conscious effort to speak steadily and calmly that she was not only trying to keep that anger in check but that she meant every single word.

He looked to his brother, but Dean, although, not as smug as a moment earlier was still not convinced "You wouldn't" He challenged her, but in weaker voice than earlier.

Her lips turned slightly into a twisted smirk "Wanna bet on that? Because I did a little research myself and I'm gonna bet that when the police get here and arrest you for what I'm assuming is illegal possession of this fine hunting paraphernalia" She said pointing to the boy's duffel bag that contained their weapons "They will run your name and prints through their system and get a nice shock to find out Dean Winchester is alive and kicking" She placed her hands on her hips and shrugged "What do you think?" She asked sarcastically "Wanna leave now or take your chances with the police?"

"Isabel we're only here to help" Dean said slowly.

"_Help_?" She asked "You've done nothing but turn my life upside down, and you've only been here a week. I will not repeat myself again. I want you out now!" She yelled.

"Fine" Sam said finally "We'll go. Dean" He looked to his brother who was still staring at Isabel in shock "Dean!"

Dean nodded slightly "Fine" He said gruffly "We're out of here"

"You have ten minutes" She said icily "Be gone by the time I come out"

With that she walked quietly into her room and closed the door behind her. Sam and Dean both stared after her.

"We're not really leaving are we?" Dean asked Sam in a hushed whisper.

"Let's just give her some time to cool down" Sam said, packing his bags "Maybe we should go talk to Jack"

They packed the rest of the stuff in silence and when they were finished they moved to the door. Sam stopped outside Isabel's bedroom door.

"We're going Isabel" Sam said, and when he got no answer he tried again "We'll speak to you later then, maybe tomorrow?"

"Don't call me" She said. After a few moments of silence they heard her voice through the door again "I'll call you"

Sam looked at his brother, who was now at the front door "That's something, I guess" He said.

They packed their things into the trunk of the Impala in silence. Sam smiled to himself as Dean took his time getting into the car. He kept looking towards the house, obviously waiting for Isabel to come out and say she'd changed her mind. But if Sam had learnt anything from this last week of living with their cousin, was that Isabel and Dean were as stubborn as each other, and while her anger would most likely pass by morning, right now was not the time to engage in further argument. Eventually, Dean reluctantly started the car and they drove off.

"She's right" Sam said as they drove towards Jack's place. Dean gave him a look and Sam quickly continued "Not about her coming with us. That was always a bad idea…but…we could have at least checked up on her"

"I did" Dean said suddenly.

"What?"

"About three years ago, I tracked her down" Dean confessed keeping his eyes on the road "I never contacted her, but I checked to see how she was doing"

"You did?"

Dean nodded "She was in college, working"He continued "I figured she was doing well"

"She probably was" Sam said "She's obviously strong and can take care of herself. She just needed to know that someone was checking up on her. You should tell her"

"Once she calms down" Dean said "Tomorrow"

"You never did hate her, did you?" Sam asked smiling.

"Dude" Dean said tiredly "She's my cousin"

"I know" Sam said.

They arrived at Jack's place and walked up the steps slowly. Sam stopped when they got to the door and turned to Dean before knocking on the door.

"Let me do the talking?"

Dean agreed with very little hesitation, after all, Sam was the people person.

Surprisingly Jack did not completely flip out when he opened the door to find the two Winchester men at his door. He just rolled his eyes and looked at them tiredly.

"What now?" He asked "I've told you it's not me. You wanna search my place too?"

"Actually Jack" Sam said in a friendly tone "We were wondering if we could talk to you for a bit"

"Did Isabel send you?"

"Isabel kicked us out" Dean said bitterly "There was… an argument"

Jack frowned "You are all a little strange, you know that?"

"Yeah, we know" Sam said "Listen, this might sound a little odd"

"Now I'm worried"

"It's just that with everything that's going on" Sam continued "We don't really like the idea of Isabel on her own. I'm pretty sure that this whole thing will blow over by tomorrow, you know? She just needs a little time to cool off"

"But tonight" Dean cut in "Maybe you could…"

"You're actually asking me to spend the night with your cousin?" Jack asked in surprise.

Dean took a deep breath through his nose and closed his eyes "Let's not overanalyse it"

"You were ready to shoot me yesterday!"

"Misunderstanding" Sam said quickly "Please Jack. We just don't want her to be alone"

Jack let out a deep breath and rolled his eyes "OK. Look, I was thinking of going over tonight anyway, to sort out what happened yesterday. I've just had a call from the deputy though, he's coming over to ask me a few questions. After we're done, I promise, I'll go to Isabel's"

Sam and Dean looked at each other for a second. It seemed like the best option so far.

"Any motels nearby?" Dean asked.


	19. Without a Trace

AN: This is where bad things start happening. Don't say I didn't warn you. AT

"What time is it?" Sam asked Dean as he sat in their motel room watching Saturday morning cartoons.

Dean shot him a withering look. It was exactly ten minutes since the last time Sam had asked him that same question, which made the time eleven o'clock on the hour.

"Just call" Dean said drying his hair after coming out of the shower.

He looked around the room. Even thought he'd only been at Isabel's a week, one night at yet another dingy motel was all he needed to realize he missed her place. He changed into his mandatory jeans and t-shirt and was now lacing up his boots when Sam's voice interrupted him.

"She's not picking up" Sam said.

"That means she either doesn't want to talk to us yet, or she's at Jack's" Dean shrugged and looked at his brother "call his place"

Sam did and again got no answer.

"No answer, and Dean before you say something crude, I don't like this" Sam said, now showing the first signs of worry "We should go to Isabel's"

"Whoa, let's not do anything rash" Dean said standing "She might still be pissed with us. Let's go to Jack's place first"

They put all their stuff back in the car and checked out, optimistic that Isabel would have calmed down overnight and would let them stay at her place again. They reached Jack's place and Dean stopped the engine before looking at Sam.

"Car's not there"

"I'm going to check it out" Sam said getting out of the car and running up the steps to Jack's door.

Sam knocked on the door but got no answer. He looked back at Dean and motioned for him to try the phone. He got the idea and started dialling Isabel's number, trying Jack again when she wasn't picking up.

Sam heard Jack's cell ringing from inside and frowned. It didn't seem normal that Jack would have left without his phone. He pulled out a metal clip from his jacket pocket and broke through the lock, just as Dean was walking up to him. They walked into Jack's place slowly.

"I've got a bad feeling about this" Sam said softly as they walked through the empty house. They opened the door to the bedroom and froze mid step.

His body was on the bed, clean shot to the head. There was a gun resting next to his hand. He was wearing the same clothes they'd seen him in the night before.

"If he shot himself, how come his car's gone?" Sam asked, then looked at his brother in realisation.

"Isabel" Dean said, running out the door with Sam behind him.

They jumped into the car and sped off. Sam was already dialling her number.

"Why is she not answering her phone?" Sam asked with agitation as they pulled up the driveway, parking behind Isabel's car.

"She's home" Dean said, noticing the lights inside were on.

They stepped out of the car and both brothers looked at each other as they heard the faint tune of Isabel's ring tone. Dean's heart skipped a beat as he noticed a shiny object near her car. He ran to it and picked it up. It was Isabel's cell phone and the screen was flashing, signalling an incoming call from Sammy. He held it up for Sam to see.

Sam wasted no time. He flipped his phone shut and ran to the door finding it unlocked. Another bad sign. Dean came barrelling in behind him, running into the house.

"Isabel!" He called out desperately "Isabel!"

Sam rushed into her room, finding it empty. He came out and faced a panicked Dean.

"She's not here" Dean said breathlessly "Isabel!"

"Check her phone" Sam said quickly "Who did she speak to last?"

Dean flipped her phone open and looked through the call register. The last call was from Deputy Stillwell at 8pm the night before. He took a couple of calming breaths and called the sheriff's office. They didn't know where Isabel was. She wasn't at the station, and they had not contacted her that day. They said the deputy was off for the weekend.

"Oh God no" Sam said in despair falling back into the couch. He watched Dean silently as his older brother paced up and down the room. He'd never seen Dean look so lost.

"He took her Sam" Dean said with watery eyes, his face a mask of anguish and barely restrained anger "Son of a bitch took her!"

"We'll find her" Sam said determined "We're going to find her"

"We have to figure this out" Dean said "Now!"

"I think she left the phone as a clue" Sam said.

"She said the other day that Stillwell was on her list" Dean said pacing again "That he moved here recently"

"He's in charge of the investigation. I don't think it's him Dean"

"It's all we've got Sam!" Dean screamed "Besides, he's the last person she spoke to and she obviously wanted us to know that" He held up the phone to Sam to cement his point.

"Why would she go with him though?" Sam said and immediately realised just why she had "I'm going to strangle her when we find her"

Dean looked at his brother in surprise, never having heard a violent word from his mouth. He too was now angry at their cousin. She had picked an incredibly risky and stupid way to help.

"He wouldn't have looked like Stillwell" Dean said now piecing the puzzle together "Jack said he was expecting the deputy last night. He must have gone to Jack's, killed him then came here for Isabel"

"Looking like Jack" Sam finished for him.

"We need to know where he is" Dean said running a hand through his hair in frustration "The station said he's off duty this weekend, so he'll probably be wherever it is he's got Isabel and the other girls. We've got to find him now"

They found Isabel's briefcase and went through it, figuring that when she did her search of men who had recently moved into town, she would have written the deputy's address in there too. They found her planner and the entry for the previous Tuesday. Stillwell's address was there and they wasted no time in driving over.

They screeched to a halt outside the deputy's cottage and ran to the door, knocking once before kicking the door down. As they walked into the house the feeling of dread only intensified when they found the place absolutely bare, as if no one even lived there.

It wasn't until they walked into what appeared to be a spare room that both boys gasped in horror. To anyone it may have seemed that the man had brought the pictures and evidence as homework pertaining to the case he was working on, but now that Sam and Dean were pretty certain it was Stillwell they were after, the scene was infinitely more chilling.

They found what could only be described as a collage of photos on the wall. They had been taken with a digital camera. The faces of Catherine Dupont, Kelly Richardson and all the other girls going about their daily business stared back at them. Sam walked forward and stood in front of the photos of his cousin. Isabel going into work, Isabel coming out of Jack's place, Isabel getting into her car.

"They start from Sunday" Dean said pulling one out and looking at it "First time she walked into the station"

"That's when he chose her" Sam said closing her eyes and shaking his head "He may have never gone for her if we…hadn't involved her in this"

"It wasn't your fault Sam" Dean said "You had the dream, you knew"

"It _is_ my fault Dean!" Sam yelled tears already forming in his eyes, angry tears "If it hadn't been for that stupid dream she wouldn't have been pulled into this. It's only because of this dream that she's…we sent her straight to him!"

"We'll get her back" Dean said determined.

"When Dean? How long has it been now?" He looked at his watch. It was almost 3pm "Sixteen, seventeen hours? We know what he's doing to her!"

"I know Sam! " Dean screamed back at his brother "Don't you think I know? But we need to think clearly to figure this out. We can't help her if we lose it"

Sam looked at his brother, his face twisted in agony "What if we don't find her in time Dean? I don't think I can take this too"

"I know Sam" Dean said gently, trying to comfort his brother "Me too"

Sam moved over to seat on the couch, his hands on his head as he stared at the ground. He took a couple of deep breaths and looked up at his brother.

"He's gotta have them somewhere near those woods" He said finally.

"Police looked through those woods, and so did we. We didn't find anything" Dean said.

"We need more information. What's near those woods?" Sam said "Who would know?"

"We can go to her work" Dean said "Someone there would know of properties around the area"

They wasted no further time and rushed once more to Isabel's work. They changed quickly into more respectable clothes and decided to play the FBI agents this time around. They walked in and were greeted by a friendly receptionist.

"Hi" The young woman said eyeing both men up and down, clearly pleased with what she saw "How may I help you?"

"We're with the FBI, can we please speak to someone about properties near Blackpool woods"

She called one of the real estate agents and a few moments later, a young man in his early thirties came out to greet them.

"How may I help you?" The man asked with a frown, wondering what the hell the FBI was doing there.

Sam wasn't trusting himself to speak all that coherently at the moment, and Dean could tell, which meant that people person or not, he was going to have to do all the talking for now.

"We're investigating the recent disappearances around the county" Dean started "We need to know of any properties there maybe around the woods"

"Properties for sale or rent?" The man asked motioning them to his desk as he sat and started clicking on his computer.

"Just properties in general" Dean prompted "What is there?"

"Well, rural properties are actually handled by another realtor, Isabel Bennett" The agent explained "Let's go check her station"

The man stood up and walked to the desk on the other side of the room. Sam and Dean followed quietly and stood in silence as they took in their cousin's desk. Her coffee mug was still sitting there, a pink lipstick mark on the edge. There was a small picture of her parents near the phone, and the boys recognised their uncle and auntie from one of Isabel's birthday parties when she was little. Dean remembered that day, he'd been there.

Sam looked at the desk calendar in front of them and picked it up. She had circled the last Friday of the month and written Sam with a red marker on the day. He looked at Dean and noticed his brother had seen it too. It was Sam's birthday.

Dean saw his brother was starting to lose his composure again and looked at the realtor impatiently "Anything?"

"I'm looking" the man said "It's not my area, like I told you, but Isabel's got the weekend off. I could call her if you'd like. She won't mind coming in, she's probably at home"

"That's alright" Dean said "Just tell us what properties are on those woods"

"Well, none" He said simply looking at Sam and Dean "There are no properties on those woods. Nearest town is about 25 miles east"

"There's nothing closer? " Sam asked desperately "On the outskirts even"

"Well, there used to be, a small mining town" He said "But it was all torn down when they built the ski lodge. It's the only thing out there"

Sam looked at his brother. Dean had the same question "Mining town?"

"Yeah, used to be a coal mine on the edge of the woods" He said casually "But it's been closed for about twenty years"

"Show us where that mine is" Dean demanded.


	20. Nightmare

AN: This chapter is pretty graphic in terms of describing violence. I really didn't enjoy doing this to Isabel. It's not absolutely essential to read it to follow the story, so it's kinda optional.

Isabel opened her eyes slowly. It was dark around her, the only light coming from a couple of candles on a wooden fold out table in the corner of the room. After the initial relief of regaining consciousness the pain in her head soon flooded over her and she had the strongest desire to pass out again.

She couldn't remember much about the night before and she struggled to recount the events that had led her here. She had been angry with her cousins still and feeling sorry for herself. She was alone in the house again, on a Saturday night with no one to talk to, and even though she had done that for eight years, after one week of being with her cousins, she suddenly realised she missed them. She'd had a few drinks. Three, maybe four, in any case, she had been a little tipsy. The buzz only seemed to intensify her feelings and when she'd heard the knock on the door, she had rushed to it. A weight had lifted off her shoulders as she looked at Jack. At the time, it hadn't seemed at all odd that he didn't even mention the afternoon before, or even asked if Dean and Sam were around. In fact, it was almost like the events of the Thursday night hadn't even happened. Would she like to go out for a drink? He'd asked and even though she was confused at the way he was acting and something in the back of her mind was telling her that something was wrong about this, she decided to go. She was going to take her phone though, so that if anything went wrong she could quickly contact either the deputy of her cousins. They were walking to Jack's car when everything went black. That's where her memory stopped.

She looked around and the feeling of dread washed over her again. She could make out a metal table near her, surgical instruments were on it. They hardly looked sterile, and even if they were it would be the least of her worries. They looked painful. Next to the table was what looked to be some sort of gurney. She vaguely remembered being on it, strapped down, something had been injected in her arm. She turned her eyes to her arm, she couldn't feel it but it was above her for some reason. She looked up and gasped in dismay to find her wrists were tied together, the rope restraining them was hanging from a hook which was in turn hanging from the ceiling. She saw blood slowly dripping down from her wrists where the rope and tension had broken the fine skin there, and she felt a small measure of thankfulness that she couldn't feel it. There was a small red mark on the inside of her elbow and she realised that the memory of the gurney and injection were true. Oh God, what the hell had he injected into her? Is that why she couldn't remember anything? Is that what had knocked her out cold?

She wondered if she should look down at herself. After a few deep measured breaths and a lot of talking to herself she decided that if she wanted to get out of here, she would have to know what kind of damage had been done to her. The fact she couldn't feel anything other than the massive headache she was experiencing, was encouraging. She looked down slowly, not knowing if she would have preferred more light in the room or not. She realised she was almost naked. Her white tank top was still on, but it was inside out and her stomach churned with the realisation that it had been off at some point and whoever had her had put it back on her. She ventured a glance to her panties and sobbed when she discovered a similar situation. She retched but nothing came out, and all she could do was sob as she took in the bruises on her leg, unmistakeably shaped like fingertips, the scraped knees, and the swollen purple ankle. She was almost kneeling, except her knees couldn't reach the floor so her entire weight was held up by her arms. She tried setting her weight on her good leg, managing to stand briefly and relieving the pressure on her shoulders and wrists, but when she balanced on her other leg, the pain through her ankle shot right up her spine and she screamed in agony. Yep, it was either broken or sprained, she thought to herself through the haze. She screamed again as she fell, she'd been able to dislodge the rope from the hook when she stood, but now her knees bore the brunt of the fall, and she couldn't use her still numb arms to break her fall. She turned her head before hitting the ground, but the side of her skull made contact and she groaned in pain.

She had to get out of there. She needed her clothes, her phone. She needed to call Dean or Sam. Where were they? What time was it? Did they even know she was missing? She ran through the events of the fight again. Why did she have to kick them out? If only she wasn't so stubborn, if only she hadn't overreacted. If only she'd handled it differently.

As she ran through a thousand 'what ifs' in her mind, she froze when she heard footsteps approaching. A door behind her opened and light flooded the room. The voice came from behind her, and she recognised it as the deputy's. She cursed herself for her stupidity. It had been Stillwell all along and she had played right into it, telling him she lived alone, that she had no one, that she knew the girls, asking questions. She had stuck her nose in too much for his liking, of course he would have come for her too. She tried crawling away.

"Morning sweetheart" He said and she shivered "good to see you awake"

She remained silent, quietly sobbing until she saw the boots in front of her. She rolled onto her back and looked up.

"You sick bastard" She said hatefully through an incredibly dry throat.

"You've already called me that" He said casually, before kicking her. She curled up as she panted, waiting for the pain in her stomach to wane "Now, I'm sorry about the ankle darling, but couldn't risk you trying to escape now could I?"

"People will look for me" She said.

"Who? You're little boyfriend?" He asked laughing "I killed him. He won't be coming for you"

"No" She cried, tears now running down her eyes. Jack's face flashed before her and even though she didn't want to believe him, she knew he wasn't lying "No" She wondered about Sam and Dean but was afraid to ask. Were they OK?

The pressure was on her shoulders again as she started moving across the floor. She looked up. He was dragging her, from her tied wrists towards the gurney, she realised.

"We've wasted enough time already" He said "You've been out for a few hours"

She struggled as they reached it and he bent down, grabbing her around the waist and lifting her up onto it. With the room lit up the way it was now, she was able to make out a lot more detail, but her mind focused on one thing only. There was another gurney about five feet away from where they were, but what actually froze her blood was staring into the cold dead eyes of a naked Leslie DaSilva. She was bloody and pale and badly beaten, but she recognised her old college friend anyway. She screamed, renewing her struggles with greater frenzy. This was a nightmare, and she wished she could just go to sleep and never wake up.

"Let me go!" She screamed vehemently, already knowing that it would make absolutely no difference "Help me!"

"I'm afraid I'm not going to that darling" He said, strapping one of her hands down. She punched him with the other, and he was quick to retaliate, her face exploding with pain. He strapped her other hand down, rendering her immobile before picking up a syringe filled with a clear fluid she'd rather not find out about. She gasped in horror as the face of George Stillwell turned into Jack's "Does this help though?"

Her throat hurt, but she had nothing else to do but scream, hoping against hope that Sam and Dean were alright and would rescue her any minute, before she shared Leslie's fate. She felt a sting in her arm and her vision faded to black.


	21. Winchesters To The Rescue

Sam and Dean drove to the mine in record time and tense silence. Dean hadn't even turned the radio on and both brothers were lost in worried and anxious thoughts. It was clear now. Stillwell was their demon. He had killed Jack and taken Isabel. After Kelly's escape and Jack's murder, Isabel would probably be the last girl he'd take before skipping town and setting up shop in some other state. It was more crucial now than ever that they find Stillwell, Isabel and the girls before that happened.

Sam pulled out the map and directions the realtor had given them and motioned for Dean to turn into a dirt road.

"This is it" He said looking around at the dark woods "The entrance to the mine should be at the end of this road"

There were no signs, and Sam wondered for a second if they'd turned into the wrong road, until they reached a wire fence. It was chained and padlocked, with a rusty old sign informing anyone who ventured there that the mine was shut, unsafe and any further progress was prohibited. They stepped out of the car and walked towards the fence. Dean examined the chain and lock before turning around walking to the trunk of the Impala.

"That's a new lock" He said to Sam as he returned with cutters. He cut through the lock and loosened the chain, before they both jumped back into the car. They sat in silence for a minute.

"What are you waiting for?" Sam asked impatiently.

"Sam, we need a plan" Dean said looking at his brother "We can't just rush in. We don't know where the girls are, we don't know where Isabel is and we don't know where Stillwell is"

"We're not going to find them by just sitting here" He understood where Dean was coming from, but now was not the time to develop a sense of logic and strategy. This was their cousin, and Sam couldn't understand why his brother, who had never been anything but impulsive, decided to waste time now "Isabel is in there!"

"I know Sam!" Dean snapped back "But the main thing is to get her out of there in one piece. Finding Stillwell is not the priority, OK? First we get Isabel and the girls out, _then _we deal with him"

Sam took a deep breath as he eventually figured it out. It finally took the life of someone close to him being threatened for Dean to develop foresight. Sam had to agree with Dean on this one, Isabel was the priority.

He looked at his brother and nodded "We should go on foot the rest of the way. Avoid being spotted"

"Let's load" Dean said opening the trunk again. He put a handgun in the back waistband of his jeans and pulled up the leg of his jeans, stuffing a knife under his sock. Sam loaded his own gun and put it in the front pocket of his jacket. He grabbed a flashlight and looked at his brother tossing a second one to him before motioning to him that he was ready to go.

They walked through the gates and up the dirt road. They reached the mine after about a mile and stood at the entrance, sharing a look before walking through.

It was easy enough to walk through the mine when there was only a single tunnel, but about ten minutes into their trek, the single tunnel split into two. They didn't have to make a decision as a soft thud reached them.

"Did you hear that?" Sam asked his brother. Dean nodded and motioned for Sam to follow him as they headed towards the sound.

After turning into a few series of tunnels they reached a locked door. There was someone behind it. Dean knocked on the door and footsteps were heard.

"Isabel?" Dean asked in a hushed tone.

A scream travelled through the door and Dean wasted no time, shooting the lock on the door. Both brothers rushed in, weapons raised and froze as they took in the scene in front of them. There were three girls in the room, which was only illuminated by Sam's flashlight. Two of the girls were sleeping, or unconscious. Sam rushed in and checked both girls, looking up at Dean again.

"They're alive" He said, then turned to the third girl, who was now cowering in the corner of the room. It was Melanie McKenzie, taken four weeks prior "Melanie" He whispered to her.

If possible the girl disappeared further into the wall, whispering incoherently to herself. Sam stood up and walked over to her, kneeling on the floor. He put his hand on her shoulder and the girl jumped a mile.

"It's OK" He said soothingly "Melanie, I'm not going to hurt you. Do you know where Isabel is?"

The girl looked at him wearily, her eyes darting from Sam to Dean. She shook her head.

"Do you know where he is?" Dean asked. The girl must have known exactly who Dean was talking about. She let out a wail and looked at Sam desperately.

"The screams" She breathed out, her eyes watching the open door "They've stopped now"

Sam heard Dean swear under his breath "Where Melanie?"

She pointed to the door they'd just come in through "End of the tunnel" She looked back at Sam "The light"

"Don't worry Melanie" Sam continued "We'll get you out of here. Do you want to get out of here? Go home?"

She burst into tears and nodded emphatically "Home!" She latched onto Sam and sobbed. Sam looked at his brother.

"Dean, I'm gonna get these girls out" He said, gently pulling Melanie up.

"What about Isabel?" Dean asked.

"Go on ahead" Sam said "I'll take Melanie up and call the police"

"OK" Dean said, not too sure about leaving his brother alone. But he was right. The main objectives were Isabel and the girls, and if anything happened to them down there, the police needed to know where the girls were "Be careful"

"You see anything that looks like Stillwell or Jack, and you shoot, you hear me?"

"Yes sir" Dean said with a mock salute. He turned to go.

"Dean?" Sam called out. Dean's face reappeared through the door "Find her. Please"

Dean nodded "I will Sam. I'll get her out"

Dean continued through the tunnel like Melanie had said. His mouth felt so dry and his heart was beating to a rhythm of its own, loud and fast. So impossibly loud he could actually feel it pounding in his ears.

Just like Melanie had said, there was a room at the end of the tunnel. There was a lock and Dean realized that the door could only be locked from the outside. He took a deep breath and opened it, bracing himself for whatever he would find on the other side.

The room was dark. He felt around for a light switch with his free hand. He pointed the flashlight to the wall immediately on his right, there were two switches. He flipped one on and the room was flooded with light. He squinted as his eyes adjusted and took the scene before him in.

"Jesus" He muttered under his breath.

The first thing he saw was Leslie's bloodied naked body on the gurney closest to him. Next to that one was an empty gurney, splattered with blood. His eyes continued to search the room until he felt his stomach drop, as if filled with lead. For a moment time seemed to stand still.

There at the end of the room, next to the back wall was Isabel. She was hanging from what looked like a hook, wearing only a tank top and panties. Blood and bruises covered her body and he swallowed hard as he realized that he and Sam had been too late to stop Stillwell hurting her. He had imagined and thought the kind of things he'd do to her in the twenty or so hours that Isabel had gone missing, but picturing those things in his head and seeing the evidence with his own eyes on her body right in front of him were two completely different things.

He took a deep breath, pushing his rising anger down, and rushed to her "Isabel?"

Her head rose slightly and she looked at him, her eyes half closed. She was squinting, watching him blankly, as if she couldn't quite make out who it was. He wasted no time. He grabbed her by her waist and hoisted her up, reaching up to pull her tied hands off the hook. She sagged against him and he lowered her to the floor, grabbing her wrists as he tried to free her hands. She groaned in pain as he pulled on the ropes, and his hands came away bloody. He reached for his knife and brought it forward to cut through the ropes.

"No" she whispered as she saw the knife, pulling her hands away.

"It's OK Bel" Dean said looking down into her panicked eyes "It's me, Dean"

She looked at him for a second, until she seemed to finally recognise him. Still, she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously "Dean?" She croaked out as she reached up with one of her hands to touch his face.

"Yeah kitten it's me" Dean said grabbing her hand and squeezing "I've gotta cut through these"

She burst into tears, accepting Dean's use of her nickname as evidence of his true identity "I knew you'd come" her voice broke. After what had seemed an eternity of screaming, her throat had been scratched raw. It hurt to even swallow.

"Yes, we're here for you Bel" He said cutting through the ropes. They came lose and she resisted the temptation to rub them, knowing that they were so skinned that it would probably hurt even more. She looked around for Sam "Sam's here too. He's getting the other girls out"

"You're OK?" She asked with a slight smile.

Dean looked at her, unsure he'd heard her right "Am I OK?" He asked her through the lump in his throat "Are _you_ OK?"

She shook her head "Home" She cried.

"I know. I'll take you home" He helped her stand, but she fell against him.

"I can't walk" she said as he caught her.

"It's alright, I've got you" He said reaching behind her knees and lifted her, carrying her out of the room.

She held on to him for dear life as Dean ran through the dark tunnel.

AN: Ooh, we're getting to the end now. Please R&R. Reviews make my work day go faster!


	22. Safe

AN: Just two more chapters and it's all over! I'm still finishing the last one so I'm afraid you'll have to bear with me for a little longer. Thankyou so much for the reviews, they are very encouraging. Toodles, AT

Dean had always thought Isabel was small, even for a girl, and seeing her half naked hanging from the ceiling had made her seem even more delicate, but running with her in his arms through the dark dusty mine shaft, he started to feel her weight. He slowed slightly until he heard his brother's voice call out to him. He squinted, vaguely making out Sam's silhouette in the distance, walking towards Isabel and him.

"Sam!" He yelled out "I've got her. Are the girls out?"

Isabel turned her head, catching a glimpse of Sam. Instantly she started thrashing in Dean's arms "No!" She screamed "No!"

Warning bells rang in Dean's ears straight away. Isabel had not freaked out when she saw Dean, but for some reason did when she saw Sam, making Dean think that this may not really be Sam.

"Where's Sam?" Dean asked. He didn't want to let Isabel go, but he couldn't get to his gun if he didn't put her down.

'Sam's' eyes glowed as he looked at Dean angrily "You'll pay for trying to take my girls"

"Wrong. They are _not_ your girls" Dean said, taking a step back "and _you_ are gonna pay"

Dean bent down to set Isabel down onto the dirty ground, but knowing what he was doing she held on tighter to him.

"Please don't go" she begged Dean desperately "Don't let him take me"

"I won't" He whispered to her comfortingly "Don't move Bel, I'll be right back"

"You can't take her from me" Said 'Sam' glancing briefly at Isabel "I'm not finished with her. She stays"

Dean snorted "Over my dead body" He said evenly.

He reached for his gun but was pushed to the ground before he could aim. The flashlight had fallen and lay on the ground nearby, casting an eerie glow around them in the narrow tunnel. The gun was knocked away as 'Sam' landed a hard punch to Dean's jaw. As he went to swing again, Dean blocked it, managing to turn them around so that he was on top. He kneeled next to 'Sam' and grabbed him by the collar, his raised hand frozen in midair as the face in front of him turned into Isabel's, contorted in fear and surprise.

Dean faltered. He knew it wasn't Isabel. Isabel was laying five feet away from them, beaten and bleeding because of what this thing in front of him had done to her. Still, he hesitated, and that was all the demon needed. The punch was hard and it was followed by a head butt that left Dean temporarily disorientated and unable to move.

He was on the ground, trying to focus his vision. He craned his neck to see 'Sam' again approaching Isabel. She'd been crawling away during their fight.

She gasped as 'Sam' grabbed her by her hair and pulled her head up to his mouth.

"Where do you think you're going, darling?" He spat in her ear.

He lifted her up and threw her against the wall, catching her before she fell forward. His hand went around her neck as he held her against the wall, her feet barely touching the ground. She watched in horror as his face moved forward, their noses almost touching. The fear inside her was all consuming and she couldn't even breathe. She was frozen. She knew this wasn't Sam, his voice was all wrong, his build was all wrong, but looking into Sam's face made it impossible for her to distinguish between reality and what she thought she was seeing.

She whimpered as she felt his cheek against hers, nuzzling her tenderly. She felt his lips against her ear as he whispered to her softly "We're not done yet"

Her self-control broke and she screamed. She watched in horror as he grabbed her face with both hands and whacked it against the wall behind her. The last thing she heard was her name being called out. It had sounded like Dean's voice.

"Get the hell away from her!"

Dean slowly reached Isabel and 'Sam', wanting nothing more than to kill this thing pretending to be his brother.

He pulled him off of Isabel and punched him again, pulling him to the ground.

"You sick son of a bitch!" Dean spat at him, as he punched him over and over again.

They wrestled for control, both gaining and losing the upper hand as they fought. Dean saw him pull out a knife from behind him and cursed himself for having left his own in the room where Isabel had been kept. He looked around for the gun he'd dropped earlier, but the light cast by the flashlight was not enough to allow for a proper search.

The demon noticed Dean's lack of concentration and pounced, tackling him to the ground. It was while 'Sam' had Dean pinned to the ground, knife raised above his head ready to plunge, that Dean heard a loud bang and felt a spray of warm fluid land on his face. The sound was repeated and the figure above him regained the appearance of George Stillwell, complete with two bullet holes. One to the head, one to the heart. Dean pushed the body aside and it landed with a thud. He looked up to see Sam, the real Sam, with gun in hand, about ten feet away.

"That felt good" Sam said.

It had been more that weird to aim a gun at himself, and he was infinitely grateful that the spell was broken now and he didn't have to look at his own dead body. It had been weird enough when it had happened to Dean.

Dean watched his brother for a moment before quickly standing and rushing over to Isabel. Sam ran to his side and dropped to his knees beside Dean, staring at their cousin's unconscious body. Dean turned her around onto her back and he heard his brother next to him gasp in horror as he took in her battered appearance.

"Isabel" Sam breathed out.

Dean's hand went to her neck and his finger rested below her jaw line for a few seconds before he let out a breath of relief. He closed his eyes and ran a hand over her head "She's alive"

Sam took off his jacket, lightly placing it over Isabel's torso. He pulled her up, noticing his brother was a little beaten up himself and held her small figure in his arms "Let's get her out of here Dean"

Dean nodded and slowly approached the fallen form of George Stillwell. He watched him for a moment, letting all the rage and hatred of the demon flow through him. He allowed himself one last venting and with all the force he could muster he delivered a powerful kick to the Stillwell's head, smiling disturbingly in satisfaction when he heard the faint sound of bone cracking.

With only one glance back at Stillwell's body, they turned around and headed out of the mine in silence.


	23. Aftermath

The ambulances had arrived by the time Sam, Dean and Isabel made it out, and police cars were everywhere, casting and eerie blue and red glow over the small clearing at the entrance to the mine. They gave Isabel over to the paramedics while the police asked them a few questions. They answered as politely as they could, before the anxiety and need to see their cousin finally overcame them.

"Can we please go see our cousin now? " Sam asked the officer impatiently.

The cop looked at him harshly but relented when he saw the young man's desperation "OK, you can go. We can finish this later"

They rushed to the hospital in record time. Once there they were told Isabel was in surgery and to sit in the waiting room, until the doctor came out with news. They sat there, next to each other, lost in thought.

"She looked hurt" Sam said suddenly. He hadn't had a chance to see where Isabel was being kept, but knew that Dean had, and from the troubled look on his face, it had not been pretty. He also didn't know what kind of injuries she had "Really hurt"

Dean stared blankly at him and all he could do was nod. The doctor came out two hours later. Sam and Dean hadn't moved from their spots. They saw the doctor approaching and stood up, taking large breaths of air, as if they were preparing themselves for the worst.

The doctor gave them an encouraging smile "Hi, I'm Dr Edvinsson, you are Isabel's family?" He asked.

Once Sam and Dean sat back down, the doctor pulled up a chair and sat across from them "your cousin's going to be fine" He said and smiled when both boys breathed in relief "She has sustained multiple injuries, but none of them are fatal"

They asked to see her, but they were informed that Isabel had been sedated and would be unconscious for a few hours while they monitored her recovery. Dr Edvinsson gave them a detailed account of the injuries she'd suffered, only making Dean and Sam wish they could kill the demon again. He watched Dean's jaw clench and his breathing quicken. He turned to Sam who had buried his face in his hands

"If it's any consolation, she's not pregnant and she will still be able to have children. She's much luckier than the other girls. I expect her to make a full recovery. You can see Isabel tomorrow"

He got no response from Dean who was clearly trying with all his might not to punch or break something. Sam raised his head and nodded his thanks to the doctor. Dr Edvinsson decided to leave the brothers alone for a while; it looked like they needed some time.

Sam could feel the anger from his brother, it seemed to radiate off of him.

"I wish he could die again" Dean said suddenly, his voice breaking from barely restrained anger "Slowly"

"Dean, it's over" Sam tried "He's dead"

"All those girls…what he did to them" Dean stood up and paced, because in that small room it was all he could do "To Isabel"

"She'll be fine. She'll pull through. She'll be fine" Sam repeated, like a mantra.

"Really Sam? You think she'll be fine?" Dean asked angrily turning to his brother "You didn't see her in that room. You didn't see what I saw"

"Dean I know you're angry, I'm angry too" Sam said steadily "But don't take it out on me"

Dean looked at Sam, an expression of sorrow on his face "I don't know if I can forgive myself for this"

Dr Edvinsson found both Winchester men slumped on the hard plastic hospital chairs after having fallen asleep sometime during the night. He informed them Isabel had been moved to her own room and was sleeping peacefully. They could go see her if they wanted to.

Dean was surprised to find it was easier seeing her strapped to a bed and plugged into a wide range of monitors than it had been to see her battered and chained in that dingy room where the demon had kept her. Still, it was chilling to take in and the whole scene brought home the message that once again, they'd let the bad guy almost get away. But more so than in any other hunt before, it had been too close. Way too close for his liking. If anything had gone wrong, he would be staring down at Isabel's dead body lying on a metal slab in the morgue. He stepped forward and gently grabbed her hand, as if to make sure she was really there, warm and alive.

They stayed with her until she awoke the next morning. She opened her eyes slowly and looked around the room until her gaze settled on her cousins standing at the foot of her bed. They were watching her cautiously. Sam was twitching in his spot and she could tell that he was really struggling with the urge to rush forward to her.

"Isabel?" Dean asked softly.

She stared at him for a moment. She vaguely remembered Dean coming to rescue her, but wasn't sure if it had been real or just another hallucination from whatever she'd been drugged with. She didn't want to get her hopes up again, only to find out she was still locked up in some dark torture room.

"Dean?" She exhaled, still unable to do more than breathe out words through her painfully dry throat.

"Yeah kitten" He said with a smile "It's me. Sam's here too" He said.

"Did you get him?" She asked.

"We got him" Sam said "It's over. You're safe"

"The girls?"

"They'll be OK too"

She nodded slightly and closed her eyes "Leslie" she said before starting to cry "Jack"

"I'm so sorry Isabel" Sam said, but she didn't seem to have heard him over the sound of her own wailing.

A nurse came in again and quickly injected something into Isabel's IV drip. It worked instantly and Isabel once more slept peacefully. Sam and Dean looked at the nurse curiously.

"This kind of reaction is not uncommon in cases like these" The large nurse said sympathetically.

"She'll get better though, won't she?" Dean asked.

"She will" The nurse smiled at them reassuringly and ran a hand gently through Isabel's hair, smoothing it out of her face "She's a strong one, I can tell. She just needs time"

After enduring three days of pharmacologically-induced catatonia, broken only by the occasional hysteria-laced panic attack or guilt-ridden melancholic daze, Isabel was in much better control of her emotions, and with the help of the medication, in better control of her mind.

"They're letting you go home on Wednesday Bel" Dean said to her cheerily.

Sam and Dean had spoken to Isabel's doctors, her psychiatrists, they had even contacted a lawyer in the three days she'd been sedated. Everything was set for her to return home later that week.

"Then what?" She asked looking straight ahead across the perfectly manicured lawns of the hospital.

It had been a nice day, so Dean and Sam had decided to take her out for a walk. Well, they were walking. Much to Isabel's dismay, she was being pushed around in a wheelchair. Physically, she had healed swiftly, and it was only her sore, sprained ankle that prevented her from moving around without assistance.

Dean stopped the wheelchair and walked around, kneeling before her to face her at eye level "We go home"

She met his eyes "I'm sorry"

Dean looked up uncertainly at Sam, who came around to kneel beside Dean "Sorry about what Bel?" He asked her.

"I'm sorry I kicked you out" She said as her face crumbled "I'm sorry I got so angry and overreacted. I'm sorry I'm so stubborn"

"Hey, hey" Dean said as he placed a hand comfortingly just above her knee. She flinched, but didn't pull away, and Dean continued, encouraged. She was slowly getting used to other people touching her again without completely freaking out "You have nothing to apologise for"

"Maybe not to you, but I'm pretty pissed at myself at the moment" She said morosely.

"None of this was your fault Bel" Sam said "Nothing that happened to you was your fault"

"I don't even know what happened!" She said, her tone line with frustration "I don't remember"

"Don't worry, you will" Sam said.

"That's just it, isn't it?" She said, fear now replacing her earlier frustration and bitterness "The doctors told me what he did to me and every now and then I think I vaguely remember something but…what if I'm better off not remembering…ever" She was quiet for a moment before her eyes returned to the gardens "I heard the other girls are going to be kept in the psych ward"

Dean and Sam exchanged a look. When they spoke to all of Isabel's doctors, they had indeed mentioned that the other girls they'd rescued would be staying in the mental health wing of the hospital until they were mentally stable, and Sam's stomach dropped when they suggested a similar scenario for Isabel. Dean had been crystal clear when he plainly said that in no way were they going to leave Isabel in a loony bin, she would come home with them and any other suggestions were not open up to discussion.

The doctors were in agreement. Isabel had only been taken for one day and she appeared to be fairing infinitely better than the other girls, who apart from being severely traumatised didn't have any family anyway.

"The other girls were down there much longer, Bel" Sam said gently "Besides, you've got us"

"Until when?" She asked looking at her cousin "You're telling me you're not going to hit the road soon? As soon as something comes up for you to hunt? As soon as you hear from your dad?"

Dean and Sam hadn't actually given much thought to how the aftermath of it all would be handled. They later sat in hospital cafeteria while quietly discussing what would happen next.

"I'm not leaving her" Sam said suddenly "Not here, not like this"

Dean looked at his brother for a moment "I agree" He said "How long do you think it'll take for her to recover though? I mean, we've still gotta find dad, and that demon"

"I don't care how long it takes Dean" Sam snapped back "I'm staying. You can go on without me if you want"

Dean sighed "That's not what I meant Sam" he said tiredly "I'm just…nevermind"

Sam was silent for a moment before finally speaking "It could be a while"

On the Wednesday morning Dean, Sam, Isabel and her two doctors sat in her hospital room as they discussed her discharge and follow up treatment.

"Everything's been arranged Mr Winchester" Dr Edvinsson said to Sam "You can sign Isabel out any time you want, and her medical treatment is entrusted to you. She is now in your care"

Sam nodded, considering the words carefully. He was now solely responsible for his cousin. Dean of course would share that responsibility, but not officially, since he was theoretically, deceased.

"I understand" He said.

He signed the release papers, collected her medication and took the written instructions as to how he would administer them. Isabel, although now more lucid than when she'd arrived, was in no state to medicate herself yet.

"Isabel, I am confident that with your strength and determination you will recover fully from this. The support of your cousins will be an immense help also. It's not a good idea for you to be alone right now" Her psychiatrist said aiming the last comment at Sam and Dean, sitting on either side of Isabel "You are, of course, always welcome to stay here in the hospital, under my care, where you'll receive round the clock monitoring until you are ready to leave"

Dean bit his tongue, knowing that out of everyone in the room, Dr Gilman was not fully convinced with the decision of Isabel going home with her two cousins this soon. Everyone watched her expectantly.

"I think I'll try being with Sam and Dean for a while" She said softly, smiling at her cousins slightly "I need them"

Dr Gilman nodded "Very well Isabel. I'm entrusting your care to Sam and Dean, but you have to promise you'll listen to them and do as they say"

"I promise to do as _Sam_ says" She said smirking.

"Well, at least you're getting your attitude back" Dean said.

"Isabel' Dr Gilman said smiling "I'm serious. Promise me"

She took a deep breath and nodded "I trust them"

>>>>>>

AN: I haven't decided on a sequel yet. What do you guys think? AT


	24. Home Again

Going home had been strange. Isabel was silent the entire way back, every so often catching Dean and Sam look her way through the rear view mirror of the Impala. She mostly kept her eyes on the side of the road as the scenery blurred by, wondering to herself just how exactly this was all going to work.

She had hardly spoken to her cousins about what happened in that mine, and she was somewhat relieved to discover that after her intensive sedation both by Stillwell and her doctors, she still didn't remember much of it. She knew what had happened from the police reports and statements, from what the doctors had told her and from the evidence still visible on her body, but the whole ordeal felt fuzzy and faint, almost like it had been a dream, or a nightmare, rather.

She was thankful for this amnesia of sorts; she figured if she truly remembered every detail of it, she would have gone as mad as the other girls. She just hoped the continuous memory loss wasn't a side effect of the medication she was on, and would probably still be on for a while yet. They made her feel numb making it easy for her to block everything out, and she preferred this to the full-blown hysteria that would have otherwise ensued.

Once home and settled again, she occasionally looked at her cousins briefly. They were still walking on eggshells around her. The most evident change was Dean's attitude towards her. She was sure he had never been this nice to anyone, ever. Then again, the way she was sedated, it was almost impossible to provoke him.

She was still blown away that they had decided to stay with her. Even though she had accepted this initially, she refused to get her hopes up too high, knowing that they would probably tire of looking after her soon and she'd end up alone again. After eight years of living alone, she suddenly realised that she feared this more than anything.

They waited on her hand and foot and she took it gracefully for the first few hours.

"Stop treating me like an invalid guys" She said finally after being asked for the sixth time in as many hours if she would like another cup of tea.

"Is there anything you want to do?" Dean asked sitting next to her on the couch.

They spent the rest of the day watching movies. Specifically, chick flicks, and she could tell from Dean's posture and the frozen grimace on his face that he would have rather spent the day watching paint dry.

"I'm tired" She said at around nine pm "I want to go to sleep"

Sam grabbed her medication and brought over a glass of water for her to take her pills "Here, take these"

She took them silently then excused herself to go to bed. She'd done nothing all day but still felt exhausted. She wondered if it was due to everything that had happened of part of the medication. Probably a bit of both, she decided.

"What do you think?" Sam asked Dean later that night after Isabel had gone to bed.

"I think she's doing better already" Dean said.

"She still won't talk about it"

"You heard what the doctors said" Dean warned his brother "When she wants to talk she will, and when she does we listen. We can't push her"

Dr Gilman had been very explicit about it. Isabel would most likely repress all memory of her ordeal, content in not remembering the gruesome details. If, and when, she was ready to talk about it, either to him or to Sam or Dean, they should be there to listen without interrogation. The main point he had driven to the brothers was not to push her into talking about something she wasn't yet ready to.

Dean could tell instantly that Sam was not overly enthused with this idea. Sam felt that talking about it would help Isabel deal with it quickly and efficiently. The doctor warned about pushing too far, throwing words like "breakdown" and "episodes" around. Dean didn't know much about psychology, but he was sure those words were not good.

"Do you think we're doing the right thing? Keeping her with us? Maybe she needs full time professional care" Sam asked, and at Dean's darkening look he continued to explain himself "I mean, are we doing this because we really think it'll help her or because we feel guilty about what happened last time?"

"It doesn't matter" Dean said, his tone steady and determined "It's like you said Sam, she's not going to go through this alone"

It wouldn't be the last time they'd question their decision to keep Isabel with them and later that night, as Sam watched Isabel cling to him desperately as he lay on the bed with her, he wondered again if she wouldn't need more than what he and Dean could offer her. He had been sleeping peacefully on the living room floor earlier that night when he was suddenly startled awake.

He remembered looking at his watch. It had been 3am. Dean was on the couch snoring peacefully, but that's not what had wakened him. He listened again until another scream came from Isabel's room. He stood up quickly and rushed to her bedroom, finding her thrashing and crying on the bed. It took him only a moment to realise she was deep in the middle of a bad dream.

The doctor had mentioned possible nightmares. The brain subconsciously consolidating memories the only way it could when they were repressed during wakefulness. He also warned them not to shake her awake, but rather, to gently comfort her until the worst of it subsided. With this in mind, he sat on the bed next to her and gently ran a hand down her arm. She jerked away violently and screamed for him to not touch her. He looked around the room, unsure how to proceed. His eyes stopped at the door. Dean was standing there, looking from Sam to Isabel in concern. The way he felt was mirrored in Dean's face, Sam noticed. Dean couldn't bear their cousin's torment anymore than he could.

"Talk to her" Dean whispered.

Sam turned to Isabel again "Shh, shh, Isabel, it's OK. It's just me, Sam" He said soothingly. He tried placing his hand on her bare shoulder again and this time she didn't flinch or pull away "You're having a bad dream"

Her arm flayed about until it struck Sam's chest and her hand fumbled, blindly grabbing at his t-shirt and pulling it towards her. He didn't resist and placed his own arm around her as she finally stopped shaking and thrashing. Only light tremors were running through her body now.

"Don't leave me" She mumbled in her sleep.

"It's OK Bel" He repeated over and over as he lay next to her. She curled up and Sam grabbed the covers and repositioned them over her. She finally settled into a deep and calmer sleep, her arm still curled around Sam's own one, as if all she needed was the knowledge that she was not alone to settle her down.

He started to drift off himself, wondering if it was in any way wrong to lay like this with her, before deciding that he would rather share the bed with her than have to hear her crying and screaming in anguish. He faintly heard Dean sigh from the doorway, and then his soft footsteps recede, before falling asleep.

Sam woke up the next morning in the same position he'd fallen asleep in. He looked down at Isabel's sleeping form. She too, was still in the same curled up fetal position she'd fallen asleep in. He gently disentangled himself and walked groggily to the kitchen, stretching his cramped muscles. To his surprise Dean was already awake, and to his even greater surprise, he had made coffee.

He poured himself a cup and sat next to his brother at the kitchen table where Dean had been reading the morning paper.

"How is she?" Dean asked.

"Still sleeping" Sam answered, taking a sip of his coffee "That was…frightening"

"That's not the last nightmare she'll be having either" Dean said "Still think she'd be better off at the nuthouse?"

Sam looked at his brother tiredly "I'm just not sure that we're ready for this. Do you really think we can handle it?"

Dean set his coffee down and looked at his brother fiercely.

"It's not about what _we_ can handle or what _we_ are ready for, Sam. It's about what _she_ needs to get better. As much as I know it's going to irritate me, I will get up every time she has a bad dream and calm her down" He said pointing towards Isabel's room "As much as I know I'm going to hate it, I'm going to sit through every damn tear she'll cry. And even though it will absolutely kill me to, I will listen to everything she has to say when she's ready to talk to us about his, down to the last damn detail"

Dean hardly ever showed his true feelings, even though Sam knew very well they ran deep. He had seen this side of Dean occasionally and because it wasn't often, when he did, it always helped to put things in perspective for him. To be honest, Sam hadn't actually seriously considered leaving Isabel, but he had wanted to make sure that Dean knew it wasn't going to be easy.

Sam nodded "I just hope we can help her Dean"


	25. Epilogue

AN: This is it! It's all over! You guys have twisted my arm, there is a sequel in the works. You will, however, have to patient with me. Stay tuned.

Thanks all for reading and for your wonderful reviews. Toodles AT

Almost a whole week passed and Isabel was showing a vast improvement. She could now walk everywhere by herself, albeit with a cane and the bruises on her face and body had started to fade. On Sunday Dean had left to look into a supposed poltergeist in a town a few hours away, insisting that Sam stay with Isabel and he would be back as soon as he took care of it. On the Monday night she announced to Sam that she was going crazy stuck in the house and she needed to get out. Sam took her to dinner and then they went to the movies. When they came back later that night, they found the Impala in the driveway. Dean had returned and Sam let out a huge relieved breath he didn't even know he'd been holding. He would have to get used to having to split their work like this from now on. It wasn't safe to take Isabel with them on their hunts, and it was even less safe to leave her home alone.

"Girls' night out?" Dean asked from the couch as Sam and Isabel walked in.

They glared at him from the doorway.

"How long were you working on that for, funnyman?" Isabel asked caustically.

Dean smiled. He'd missed his cousin's sarcasm "About half an hour" He held his arms out to her "Come here, give Dean some sugar"

She snorted but limped over to him all the same, taking a seat next to him and giving him a kiss on the cheek. She leaned against him and rested her head on his shoulder.

"How did it go?" Sam asked.

"Piece of cake" Dean said "You guys have fun tonight?"

"No" Isabel snapped and crossed her arms angrily "Everyone kept staring at me. With pity. Like I was some weak spineless doormat too scared to leave her abusive jerk boyfriend"

"Oh" Dean said then looked to Sam "And you?"

"Everyone kept staring at me like_ I_ was the abusive jerk boyfriend" Sam said taking his jacket off and slumping on the arm chair.

"Any more bad dreams?" Dean was watching Sam, who shook his head slightly.

"No" Isabel said "Three nights now"

She'd had another bad dream on Friday, not that she particularly remembered, but she did wake up with her head resting on a thick warm forearm. She had recoiled away from it in surprise and alarm until she recognised the arm belonging to Dean, sleeping unperturbed next to her. She could never remember what her dreams were about or what had happened over the night, but figured it must have been pretty intense if Dean and Sam felt that one of them should stay with her through the night. She didn't ask exactly what had happened and they never asked her the next day. She was thankful for that, because she wouldn't have really known what to say.

"Do you know what I think I need?" Isabel asked.

"What?" Sam asked slowly.

"I need to get away" She said raising her head from Dean's shoulder, her eyes not brimming with enthusiasm at the idea that had randomly popped into her head "Get out of town for a while, what do you think?"

"Alone?" Sam asked eyeing Dean warily.

"No. The three of us" She said smiling "Like a road trip"

"Isabel, my entire life is one huge road trip" Dean said.

"Yeah, but without me" She said looking at him pleadingly "Imagine the three of us on the road"

"You're scaring me"

She slapped him on the arm playfully "Come on, it'll be fun. I need to get out of here Dean" She looked up at Dean whose face revealed to her that he was not in the least convinced. She figured she'd have more luck with Sam "Sam, don't you think it'd be great?"

"I don't know if it's a good idea" Sam said.

She stuck her bottom lip out and put on her best puppy dog eyes. She'd used this technique to great effect wit her dad, and knew that it was certain to succeed "Please?"

Sam looked towards Dean, who could now tell his young brother had caved in and was now almost pleading with Isabel and seeking Dean's consent. Dean looked at his brother sternly, knowing that it now rested on his shoulders and was prepared to shoot both his brother and his cousin down when she turned the look on him.

"Damn" He muttered under his breath. There was no getting out of it now "We'll see what your doctors say"

"So that's a yes from you?" She asked, her eyes wide with excitement.

"Yes"

She smiled brightly and he couldn't fight the impulse to smile back. It was the first genuine smile he'd seen on her face all week, and it was by far the most beautiful thing he'd seen all day.

"Yay!" She said waving her arms in the air before wrapping them around her older cousin "Road trip!"


End file.
